Her Ani, His Imoto
by Shriayle
Summary: When Aldini Takumi left his native land of Italy to study at Tōtsuki Academy, he didn't know exactly what to expect. He did know that he didn't expect to be nearly flunked out at his transfer exam by an arrogant blonde― or saved by the unlikely arrival of a red-haired boy who seems to be her older brother. AU: Brother!Soma/Sister!Erina. Pairings have mostly been decided.
1. Appetizer

**Oh boy, this is going to be a wild adventure.**

 **While this story was started with the latest update being Ch. 139, it will keep up with the manga as much as possible. It will end after first year, I think.**

 **Now, I typically write by myself, but for this story, I've enlisted the help of the lovely l Hypocrisy l for his sage advice in all things editing and preventing-OOC-ness! All thanks go to him for making this chapter sound coherent~**

 **I hope this story gets just as much support as _Welcome to Hell_ has been getting, but hey, we'll just have to see~**

 **Oops, nearly forgot. Shokugeki no Soma does not belong to me. All characters belong to their creators. All I own be the alternate universe.**

* * *

It was a pleasant, spring day. The leaves rustled cheerfully in the wind, blowing a fragrant scent across the scene. Tall, imposing buildings were interspersed between the trees, standing firm against the light breeze. It was a peaceful scene that the blue-eyed, blond-haired boy walked up to.

At least it would have been, were it not for the groups of teenagers about the same age as him bemoaning their fates, and their parents or guardians curled up on the ground begging on their hands and knees to uncaring guards to let their child back into the Academy.

For this was _the_ Tōtsuki Tea Ceremony and Cooking Academy the blond approached, where the high-class elites, those children who might be capable of standing at the pinnacle of the food world, came to train and excel. Out of the thousands of students enrolled each year, only a handful would graduate while the rest buckled under the pressure or were drawn away by better prospects. Anyone who even enrolled and managed to survive to second year was known as one of the shining stars of their generation, but graduating? It was the highest honor, one practically unrivaled in the cooking world. The blond boy knew of this and just now was gaining a growing sense of trepidation upon seeing the despair that Tōtsuki caused, even before the year started.

Biting his lip, the boy clenched the precious case in his left hand and readjusted the bag slung over his shoulder. He felt himself begin to breathe faster and faster, getting dangerously close to hyperventilating as he panicked at the sights before him.

 _'This isn't what I expected when I left Isami and Father behind_.' The thought was numb, disjointed.

It didn't come with an additional sense of fear, but with growing nausea. The boy quickly controlled his breathing, taking a deep breath to force his heart rate to slow back down, before he steeled himself up and walked up and into the buildings.

His father's challenge rang in his mind in a distant echo: _graduate Tōtsuki or hand the reins over to Isami_.

His brother was to be trained in the kitchen, with experience in the fast-paced setting so that he could serve the patrons more effectively.

He however was to be trained in the Academy to learn more refined skills to elevate the restaurant even further. They were going to be a team, just like they always were. The concept was just enough to make the boy steel himself further and walk up to the school, more resolute than ever.

 _'I won't disappoint you,'_ Aldini Takumi thought with a grimace, walking onto the campus and hoping to god that the worst would never come.

* * *

A single water droplet sent ripples through the gently flowing water. A blonde girl was relaxing in the warm steam of a bath, her eyes closed in mild bliss. A faint blush seemed to form on her cheeks. She let out a soft sigh, reveling in the feeling.

A single eyebrow twitched. Something was wrong.

She opened a single amethyst eye to see a giant, grey-furred beast sitting in the bath with her, its knees held close to its chest, its beady black eyes staring directly at her. She sat in befuddled silence, the beast staring at her blankly.

"THIS IS GARBAGE!"

The blonde girl snapped her real eyes open, violet eyes flashing in rage, her hand already moving to slam the boiling hot bowl of barely eaten soup on top of the head of the groveling boy in front of her. She stood up in a quick dart-like motion, her anger a palpable aura about her. The boy fell backwards, whimpering against the high temperature of the soup now running down his head, but the girl paid him no mind.

"I'm amazed at your impudence," she sneered, crossing her arms across her chest. "Each and every one of you! Your dishes were disgusting! I can only assume that you decided to skip one of the pre-cooking steps."

The face of the boy in front of her exposed his fear at her revelation.

Her eyes softened slightly, making him hesitate. "I know that you are trying to expand more, optimize your cooking. I understand." Her voice had gained a slightly sympathetic lilt, one that promised of possible mercy. The boy looked almost hopeful.

Immediately her face grew hard again, her eyes pieces of purple flint. "Even then, do you think I can forgive you for daring to grace my palate with this utter trash?!"

The boy, as well as the forty-or-so others behind him, immediately kowtowed, avoiding eye contact with the regal girl. "WE'RE TERRIBLY SORRY!" they screamed in a failed attempt at unison. The girl paid their actions no mind, already turning away to glance at the pink-haired girl kneeling beside her, eyes staring at the ground. The blonde girl frowned before walking over.

"Hisako." The pink-haired girl glanced up at the blonde.

"Yes, Erina-sama?" she asked.

Erina said nothing, choosing instead to grab Hisako's shoulder and pull her up slightly, much to the pink-haired girl's surprise.

"Get up. This crouching is beneath you," Erina growled at her. Hisako nodded quickly before standing next to Erina. She maintained a stiff posture, one that made Erina sigh slightly before shaking her head and continuing on.

"What's my next appointment?" she asked. Wordlessly, Hisako handed her a sheet of paper with a list of instructions that Erina perused quickly, her lip curling in response to the message.

"Who gave this to you?" Erina asked sharply.

"B-Botchan, Erina-sama," Hisako said, eyes staring at the ground again.

"Tch," Erina tsked, sneering at the paper before folding it neatly and handing it back to Hisako with a slight flourish in her wrist. "Well, if he says so, I guess I'll have to go." She turned around and walked off in as stately a manner as possible, Hisako hurrying to stay up with her.

* * *

Takumi felt himself suppress a growl as his peers sneered down at him. They were all dressed in the classiest of clothes, silken chef's uniforms that weren't stained at all, and lovely satin pieces that looked more like a doll's clothes than any kind of actual apparel.

Takumi looked down at himself. He was wearing his worn jeans and white t-shirt, along with a faded leather jacket. Not the best of his casual outfits, yes, and he felt even more scruffy in comparison to these obviously novice wannabe chefs because of it.

They were all standing in a fairly large room, one that was filled with stainless steel apparatuses from stoves to devices that Takumi had no idea how to even start using. The other children, obviously richer than the diner boy that Takumi knew he was, were milling about, boasting of their family's high standing in the culinary world and of how they were expected to graduate with the highest of honors. Takumi internally snorted at their claims, seeing their soft, unmarked hands and spotless clothes.

 _'They have never been where I was._ _'_

These children had never had to suffer through a dinner rush, their hearts pounding as orders piled in with no one else to take them; they'd never burnt their hands and ignored the pain as they continued to serve patrons because what the customer wanted was always what he had to provide. They would never understand that failing to provide what was expected was the highest form of dishonor that Takumi could ever even consider. They hadn't felt the blood, sweat, and tears shed in the kitchen, where your enemy was yourself and you had to fight through with every last remnant of your soul. All they saw was the fame of being a famous chef, just a mere benefit to being known as an alumnus of Tōtsuki itself. It sickened Takumi.

"Listen up! I was entrusted with running this entrance exam this morning."

Takumi jumped slightly. He hadn't heard the other person enter, and he began to look around for an older woman, one maybe in her twenties judging by the voice that had called them to attention.

Instead, he saw a blonde girl around his age in the Tōtsuki student uniform and another girl standing dutifully behind her.

A lump rose in Takumi's stomach. He recognized the girl's icy visage, her emotionless purple gaze, her sharp tone. Standing in front of the mass of prospective students was Nakiri Erina, the bearer of the legendary "God's Palate", part of the legendary family that ran Tōtsuki and, by extension, the culinary world. Erina was known for tearing down chefs' nascent careers with sharp words about lack of preparation, disgusting flavors, and apparently incredibly odd metaphors to fully explain her disgust for their dishes. She was feared amongst the finest of gourmet chefs, and those she approved of saw profits skyrocketing while those she pushed away were soon left for the streets.

She was going to be the one evaluating them?

Erina flicked her hair over her left shoulder with a careless twitch of her wrist. She turned to the girl who had come with her. "Hisako, please read for me the requirements of this transfer exam."

The pink-haired girl nodded before taking out a sheet of paper from the stack in her arms and clearing her throat. "We will first conduct an interview, separating all candidates into groups of ten based on application. Afterwards, you will be required to cook three different dishes to judge your practical cooking skills. The third part is―"

"Hmph! Onii-san must have made this test specifically to annoy me," Erina sneered lightly. She took the paper out of Hisako's hand, glared mildly at the messily scrawled writing on it, and crumpled it in her hand, tossing it behind her for Hisako to catch hurriedly. "Forget that. I have a better idea. Bring out the kitchen tables!" She clapped her hands together three times as a signal.

Hisako put the papers in her hand down and left the room. She came back in later, pushing out a table of ingredients in front of her. She wheeled in the table until it was placed behind Erina, who smirked at the nervous transfer prospects before turning around and perusing the table. She grabbed something from one specific area, revealing the ingredient in her hand to the other teenagers.

"You will prepare one dish with this as your main ingredient," she declared, making sure that everyone saw the egg in her hand. "This is your only chance. If you can please my tongue, then you're in. And you have... let's say, one minute to rescind your decision to transfer in, starting now."

A flurry of feet and terrified shouts accompanied the exit of every single prospective student, frightened off by both Erina's reputation and her challenge. All of them, that is, except for Takumi. The blond chef snorted to himself, as he stood alone, everyone else having abandoned the challenge. He wasn't frightened by her task; rather, he was invigorated. He felt ready to conquer the challenge and get into Tōtsuki!

"Excuse me," Takumi tried to say. "I'd like to clarify something about the challenge."

"They all left. Good riddance," Erina said with a sniff, apparently ignoring Takumi. She turned around. "Looks like we won't be admitting anyone this year. My schedule's been freed up; looks like I can work on that new dish of mine now."

The pink-haired girl with her began to water at the mouth, swallowing daintily at the thought of tasting Erina's newest dish. The motion wasn't lost on Erina, who observed with a coy grin.

"Oh? Do you want to come taste my newest dish with me? We'll just have to tell Onii-san that this year there will be no transfer students, and then we'll go off to the kitchens, just the two of us." She leaned closer to Hisako, smirking slightly now. Hisako looked dazed, still stuck on the idea of being the first to try Erina's newest dish.

"O-Oi!" The two girls froze and turned to see Takumi, who was slightly fuming. Having caught their attention with his slightly louder than necessary shout, Takumi blushed slightly at their intent gazes. "So, anything with eggs, right?"

Erina blinked, struck by this teenager's boldness to take her challenge on. "Yes, anything that features the egg as a main ingredient."

"Ah, _grazi_!" Takumi said, slipping back into his native tongue. "Nakiri Erina-san, I'd like to ask you to please wait while I prepare for you a dish you will enjoy!"

"Get started," Hisako snapped. "Erina-sama doesn't have the time to deal with low-class chefs like you every day! You're lucky this time!" She was more than a little irate that she couldn't leave and try Erina's new dish.

"Hisako," Erina admonished quietly.

Takumi blinked, caught off-guard. He half expected Isami to appear behind him, laughing at his misfortunes as his chubby brother was partial to doing, but the abnormal silence cut into Takumi more than the chuckles ever did. The blond Italian glanced behind him almost instinctively before remembering rather forcefully that Isami wasn't there. Takumi nodded to Erina, back into her world, and walked over to the kitchen table, glancing at the ingredients there. His eyes went hooded in concentration before they lit up in recognition and he began to work, his fingers flying across his ingredients.

Erina privately marveled at Takumi's knife-work. While one hand whisked together a combination of eggs and cream, the other was flying through stalks of green onion and asparagus, chopping them up into impossibly precise slices and setting them aside. He apparently finished the egg mixture and began to throw in herbs and salt while also preparing a pan with oil and butter. Takumi moved with an intensity that seemed almost unbalanced, as though it needed another to help him work it out, but he was still shockingly efficient and as well-trained as any of the top performers from her year.

" _È_ _fatta_ ," Takumi declared, setting out a portion of something in front of Erina. She looked at it, eyebrows raised. "Asparagus quiche."

In the silence that ensued, Takumi could have dropped a fork and it would have been heard throughout the kitchen.

 _"What."_ Erina responded, inwardly seething. This boy had intrigued her so much, and now just presented her with a simple quiche? Not even one elevated, one that would satisfy her tongue?

Takumi faltered slightly. "I mean, it was going to be a frittata, but I felt that it would be better in quiche form..." he said, backing away from Erina slightly.

Erina harrumphed at him before snatching up a fork and viciously stabbing the piece of quiche, releasing a small plume of fragrant steam that made Erina's traitorous mouth water, though she tried to fight the urge. Swallowing slightly, she slowly put the piece of food into her mouth.

It was an explosion of flavor.

Buttery egg and fresh asparagus enveloped her in an embrace so rich and warm that she felt herself tremble unwillingly. The richness of the flavor was balanced by the light fluffiness of the egg, all tied together by the clean taste of rosemary and other herbs that Takumi had carefully folded into the egg. Erina felt her tongue leading her on an adventure through a woodland glen, her entire form buffeted by the light touch of feathers everywhere. Birds flew down to chirp into her ear as they brushed past her, dropping slivers of asparagus on her and bathing her in a rich egg-and-butter flavor.

Her eyes opened again. She saw the disgraceful food in front of her, yet she couldn't even bring herself to sneer at it again. She heard herself give a tiny whimper and immediately flushed bright red from embarrassment. Before she could snap something about how disgusting the food was to make up for her mortification, she heard three voices in the doorway of the kitchen.

Three laughing voices.

 _Oh no..._ Erina slowly turned to the doorway to face the three chuckling teenagers there. Hisako hastily bowed to them, and Takumi looked over curiously, not recognizing their faces.

"Hey there, Imōto-chan," one said casually. He was leaning against the doorway, his lanky form practically taking up the entire space of the door, with the other two standing behind him. He had a slash on his left eyebrow and long and shaggy red hair that stuck up in spikes all over his head. His golden eyes were filled with a devilish mirth that was tempered slightly by the softer smile playing on his lips. His left ear was pierced, a single golden earring piercing its lobe and hanging down from it.

"Ani," Erina said in a monotone. Hisako had stood up by then but hung back from entering the conversation.

Takumi was confused as all heck.

"You seem to be enjoying the food," the boy continued on, his smile curving into a feline smirk now.

"Of course not," Erina snapped back, her face turning red again. "It's plebeian fare. I couldn't possibly enjoy something as lowly as this dish."

The girl standing behind the red-haired boy smiled kindly at that, though the placement of the smile made it seem all the more menacing for it. Her glowing topaz eyes, just a shade different from the red-haired boy's, shone with a benevolent yet unamused light. Her left hand was playing with one of her navy blue braids while the other was behind her back, and Takumi could see a golden ring glimmering on her pointer finger.

"Come now, Erina-imōto-san," she said in a bell-like, singing voice. "We've been here for quite some time. We could see just how much you enjoyed that dish."

The third member of the newcomers, a brunet boy with glimmering light blue eyes, only slightly shorter than the first boy, had approached the quiche still sitting on the counter, his hands nonchalantly shoved into his pants pockets. As he leaned over to examine its cooling smell even further, Takumi noticed a silver chain with yet another golden ring hanging on it slide out from under his shirt. He inhaled the scent before sighing and standing back up.

"Senpai, this food is more than enough to allow any student into the Academy," the boy said rather serenely, closing his eyes in satisfaction. That announcement pushed Erina to the edge; why were they taking her power away from her, right in front of the transfer student in question?

"What is the meaning of all of this, anyhow?" Erina snarled. "Those instructions? This _test_? Why was I assigned to do this? As heir to the name Nakiri and, by extension Tōtsuki itself, I do not need to debase myself with this menial task! And why is Isshiki-senpai here! He is only the seventh seat, not even worthy of overriding my opinion!"

"Why, I thought you were looking for another aide, Imōto-chan. You've been talking about it for quite some time now. I thought you would appreciate a first look at the newcomers. Also, you aren't even on our level, Imōto-chan, so don't try and overrule us," the red-haired boy chided, pushing himself away from the doorway to stand fully in it. "Megumi-san, Satoshi-san, go on. Maybe our little Imōto-chan can accept that even the lowliest of foods can please the best of palates." He gave Erina a stern look before gesturing for the other two with him to leave as he walked into the kitchen. The girl nodded to Takumi in approval before heading out, and the second boy smiled kindly at Takumi before following her, leaving the red-haired boy behind.

"Ani, please leave me be," Erina said through gritted teeth, feeling even more frustrated than ever.

The boy said nothing to her, merely looking at her up and down, his eyes softening somewhat. He reached out a hand to tousle the top of her head, messing up her hair slightly and getting a surprised squeak and a smack on the hand for his troubles. He smiled lightly at that before turning to Takumi.

"You. Kid. What's your name?"

"A-Aldini Takumi, sir."

"Cut the sir out of what you just said," the boy said lightly. He held out a hand, one that was marked with knife scars, healed burns, and calluses. Takumi glanced at the hand before looking back up at an expectant face and hesitantly taking the hand and shaking it.

The red-haired boy smirked, and Takumi felt as though he either passed or completely failed a test. "Saiba Sōma," the boy declared, releasing Takumi's hand before winking at him teasingly and walking away from the now speechless blond boy. "I'll see you around, Aldini Takumi-kun. And Hisako-chan?" A squeak came from the pink-haired girl, who was staring at the floor with wide-eyes, her face turning bright red. "Keep an eye on Imōto-chan for me, will you?"

He left out of the same door as the others with him had gone.

Silence stretched out between the remaining teenagers.

"So..." the two girls stared at Takumi. "Did I pass?"

Erina's eyes lit up in an indignant fury.

Takumi immediately regretted asking the question.

* * *

"Saiba-san! You can't just run off like that!" said a harried-looking white-haired teenager who was waving his arms about in the same manner that a chicken fluttered around its coop, his white eyes now wide and distressed. He nervously tugged at the silver chain around his neck, muttering about not getting any breaks from the stressful life he led.

"Ah, sorry, sorry," the red-haired teenager said with a nonchalant wave of his hand. He yawned obnoxiously. "Had to check up on something."

"Or someone?" This remark came from a girl with raspberry-colored hair and yellow, feline eyes, a silver earring with a tiny pearl embedded in it luminously glowing from its place on her right ear, piercing the cartilage. Her normal dog-toothed smirk was stretching across her face.

Sōma smirked right back at her. "Who else?"

"She'll have to learn that even though she's the heir to Tōtsuki and practically the younger sister of the First Seat, she has to earn her own reputation," another voice said. Sōma glanced over to the speaker, another white-haired teenager, though her eyes were not icy in color but appeared to be a deep blood red hue. She had a single finger on her chin in a fake thoughtful pose.

"Oh? And the fact that her cousin sits Fifth Seat doesn't mean anything for her?" Sōma shot back.

"She hasn't had to fight for her place yet," a final teenager added in. His dark form contrasted well with the pure whiteness of the girl next to him, from his ink-black hair to the apparently genetic black marks under his eyes, though he did share a pair of blazing crimson eyes with said girl next to him. The two teenagers both had golden rings inlaid with rubies on their right pinkies, and the male teen was playing with a couple of balls as he stared at the wall with some semblance of boredom written on his face.

"Unfortunately, no," Sōma said with a sigh, shaking his head. By then, Megumi and Satoshi had caught up with him and were flanking him as usual. He gestured for the other teenagers, including a few that hadn't spoken, to sit down at the table they were standing around. "Now, it's time to get to business."

A girl farther down the table with green hair twisted into braids and large round glasses cleared her throat briefly, a tiny glint of silver glimmering from her wrist. She picked up a sheet of paper and began to recite the words printed on it.

"The first meeting of the Elite Ten in the graduating year of the 90th Generation has commenced today at 13:47. This year's Elite Ten:

Saiba Sōma, third year, First Seat;

Tsukasa Eishi, third year, Second Seat;

Tadokoro Megumi, third year, Third Seat;

Kobayashi Rindō, third year, Fourth Seat;

Nakiri Alice, third year, Fifth Seat;

Kurokiba Ryō, third year, Sixth Seat;

Isshiki Satoshi, second year, Seventh Seat;

Kinokuni Nene, second year, Eighth Seat;

Kuga Terunori, second year, Ninth Seat;

Lastly, Eizan Etsuya, second year, Tenth Seat."

"Thank you, Kinokuni-san," Eishi said, his frazzled expression settling into his serious demeanor.

"Let's start," Sōma declared, leaning back as the preparations for the new school year began.

* * *

 **Yep. I went there. Sōma-niichan is a go xD**

 **Let me know what you think so far~ Updates will be few and far between seeing as college is still a thing in my life.**

 **-Shriayle**


	2. Gold and Silver

… **I'm frankly quite disgusted in a couple of the reviews I've gotten for this story. There will be no Sōma/Erina** _ **whatsoever**_ **. I know that seems peculiar to some readers, as it is admittedly my favorite pairing. I will jump on that ship every time I can. This is not a time I can jump on that ship. Erina might be a little starstruck by Sōma's success, and he might be a bit overprotective of her, but that is more based on their relationship as siblings, not their relationship as lovers. If you want a Sōma/Erina story, please go to Welcome to Hell and stop asking me for implied incest.**

 **That being said, this isn't going to be Takumi/Erina either, because that would** _ **really**_ **not work out.**

 ***bonks self on head* I almost forgot: Thanks again to l Hypocrisy l for putting up with my musings and rearranging the chapter to make it sound better.**

 **Replies:**

 **DestinyVain:** You're too kind | **QuantumComplexity:** (It's been almost a month ahhhh sorry sorry) And since I'll never address it, really, Sōma calls Megumi 'Megumi-san' in settings where they're with other people and by other I mean others besides Satoshi. There will be quite a bit of interaction between the two later. | **Saint Danielle:** A5..? Oh, like Ikumi-A5. Okay. Elite Trio is sort of inaccurate, but also strangely fitting. Soma's specialty made me think quite a bit but I think I've come up with something I'm proud of now. Megumi has changed since her stuttering, nervous days~ And really, Megumi and Rindō are on equal footing here, as are Sōma and Eishi! It's something I'm trying to work out as we speak. Ryō is one of the more interesting characters to me as well. I'm not sure yet about including canon E10 members in the first-years here; maybe if the manga reveals more about them later on I'll be able to include them somehow. And the jewelry question will be answered in this chapter. | **Cat McHall:** E10 took more consideration than I thought it would n_n Glad to see that everyone seems to approve. | **panko (Guest):** Imagination is the spice of life. Or something. | **kapuuchuu (Guest):** BAMF!Megumi is best Megumi :D I am definitely continuing this story, as well. | **Some Guy (Guest):** No. | **Kaleidoscopic Dragon:** Uh. No. They are not going to be romantically involved, there will be no romantic interest between the two, etc. etc. I want to explore a new dimension to their relationship; adding in possible romantic thoughts would just make that plan moot. | **Dianne060807 (Guest):** I had quite a time coming up with this idea myself :P | **swishyla:** Erina's gotta work for herself now, yep. I was going to make some of the other first-years into second-years, but then I realized that set up might be too much of a headache so I decided against it. | **Guest:** Thanks~ | **Illusionist Owl:** I strive to be weird about these things :P There is a reason why Sōma is a Saiba in this story, as well. | **Guest (2):** Takumi may or may not become Erina's aide. I'm not sure yet. Read previous response for the answer to your second question! And thanks for the compliments on the idea~ | **Vivid Nemesis:** I like the idea of older!Sōma a lot, can you tell? Also I really wanted to do a SōMegu story for whatever reason and this was a perfect outlet~ | **HJSDGCE:** Thanks for waiting! | **Title Unwanted:** I refuse to budge on the Sōma/Megumi. | **FoulIceQueen:** THEY ARE SIBLINGS YES. I had quite some fun coming up with this AU! I will update as quickly as possible~ | **Hinate (Guest and otherwise):** Yeah no incest please stop reading this story right now. Seriously. Your reviews are a little creepy and completely miss the point of the story. | **l Hypocrisy l:** (what are you doing reading the story now weirdo editor) (jk you're a cool cat) And Megumi is adorable don't diss Megumi psshhh | **Sarah G (Guest):** Um, I wasn't thinking of it that way. More like Sōma is that older brother that terrorizes the hell out of his little sister. And cousins? I don't think so. I'll ask them later.

* * *

Takumi blinked the sleep out of his eyes, rubbing his still-heavy lids in the hopes of clearing any bleariness physically. No such luck. He grimaced as he struggled to recover from the jetlag of flying from Italy to Japan. Why he decided that a red-eye flight would be a good idea, Takumi would never know. It was as if he forgot how bad he was at sleeping on airplanes, especially when he was alone.

The reminder of his solitude sobered Takumi, who glanced backwards through blond strands of hair to see if his usual shadow was behind him. No, Isami was still in Italy. Takumi still remembered the tears that threatened to fall from his eyes that he stubbornly fought against, trying to look strong for Takumi.

" _Non preoccuparti!"_ Isami had said, holding a fist out to Takumi. "I can take care of the Trattoria for you when you get back, _fratellone._ You can count on me!"

Takumi had given him his usual self-confident smirk, his eyes as clear as the skies above, pushing his fist in front of him to bump it into Isami's. "I'm not worried for myself, Isami," he had declared, picking up the suitcase set next to him. "I'm worried for the world; no one's going to be prepared for the Aldini brothers after I graduate!"

They had parted with determination burning in their hearts.

Takumi didn't let a single tear fall until he had gotten in the taxi to head to the airport.

"...to the best of the year." Takumi jumped. His musing had meant he zoned out for the beginning of the assembly. That simply wouldn't do. He strained his ears to listen to the rest of what was being said.

"Representing the first-years, Nakiri Erina." The staff member backed away from the microphone, bowing to Erina as he did so.

Takumi blinked. He had forgotten that, despite the reputation preceding her, Erina was a student at Tōtsuki as well. She was his equal, legally. She didn't even hold a higher station than him, despite attempting to force one onto him. She was a first year, he was a first year. They would learn together, and they would graduate together. Hopefully. If all went well.

Erina calmly strode onstage and shook the staff member's hand before taking a fragile piece of paper, turning to bow at the audience, and walking offstage as gracefully as ever. Following her was a much more forbidding figure.

Nakiri Senzaemon always cut a figure wherever he went, whether it was due to his exceedingly buff physique despite his age or his own reputation as "Food's Demon King." Takumi felt the dark aura surrounding the man reach out to touch even him, backstage, and he shuddered at the feeling. The other students must have felt it as well, for the murmurs that had started up when Erina walked onstage suddenly doubled before muffling into white noise as Senzaemon cleared his throat, indicating that he was about to speak.

"Ladies and gentlemen," he began, "congratulations on reaching the high school section of Tōtsuki's rigorous course."

Well, that was unexpected.

"Throughout your three years in middle school, you've developed the theory of cooking, knowledge of preparation, and the basics of instruments. You've sat through lectures on nutrition, theory of cooking, sanitation, agriculture, restaurant management… and now, you stand here, at the entrance of the high school section. We won't test you on your knowledge now. We've already done that, and we've already hacked out the weeds that have proven themselves unworthy.

"High school will see if you can make it not just as a cook, but as a chef."

Senzaemon's demeanor shifted from benevolent to malevolent in a heartbeat.

"Ninety-nine percent of you," he pronounced slowly, relishing every syllable, "will be sacrificial stones used to polish the one percent that will rise above all."

The students went silent.

"Eight-hundred-and-twelve first-years entered high school last year. This year, seventy-six second-years are ready for another year of school. All incompetence will be cut away like fat from a steak. In the end, at graduation, there will be enough students to count on a single hand. All the others are superficial, set to work menial tasks. You handful of chefs, hidden in these stones; you will lead the culinary world. You will take the world by storm!"

The students were almost encouraged by this speech, and Erina scoffed at their excitement. _'It's much too bad that all of you were destined to fail at achieving number one with me in your graduating class,'_ she mused, smirking. _'I shall rule the culinary kingdom as its queen, its monarch, its tyrant. I will be the one to set the foundations for a new world!'_

"Thank you, Director Nakiri. Next, a word from this year's Elite Ten, First Seat."

Erina nearly fell off of her chair. This wasn't part of the usual ceremony. He wasn't supposed to come onstage, flaunt her inferiority in front of everyone. This wasn't supposed to happen.

But happen it did. The other students went silent as a smirking red-haired boy with golden eyes walked onstage. A white strip of cloth resembling a bandage was tied to each wrist, and he seemed to take particular care to stretch his arms out so that everyone could see the cloths as marks of power, something he held over them. Once he finished his faux-stretching session, he blinked slowly, luxuriously, like a cat playing with a mouse.

Indeed, he was a cat playing with a mouse.

A cat playing with hundreds of mice without a single care in the world.

"Ah, ohayō," he said with a bored expression, settling his hands around the podium and gripping the edges. "You all probably heard of me. Saiba Sōma, here to grace you with his presence." He took a mock bow and when his face reappeared, he was smirking much more openly.

"Hey now, don't look so frightened!" he said, laughing outright. "This is school! This is cooking! Hone yourself and you're going to go far!

"Of course, that being said…"

Sōma closed his eyes for a second longer than necessary and held his silence for a heartbeat longer than necessary. He pursed his lips slightly before opening his eyes and staring directly into the crowd.

"I already know which ones of you will be graduating."

An uproar went up throughout the crowd. How could this boy, one only a couple of years older than them, know who would be successful or not?

Sōma smirked slightly, tapping the side of his head. "Call it an intuition," he said smoothly. "Now, exactly who they will be? It's up to you to figure out yourself. I promise you, at the end of this year alone, as you get winnowed down to the select few that will manage to graduate, there will be frontrunners, all fighting for my Seat, while the rest of you flounder in the shallows.

"There are ways to ensure your success, of course. There are two factions in the upper divisions of Tōtsuki, two factions held higher than other students. Each faction emphasizes something different, let's say, but I'll leave that to you to figure out. Really, there are three groups of students here: those of the two factions and those who are rejected from either. And to those of you I see perking up, as if this could save you, the only way to get into a faction is to prove yourself. So show me: do you have what it takes to get into my faction? Do you have the raw talent and determination to make you worth pouring Tōtsuki's resources into so you can grow? And can you show me that you do?" Sōma leaned back, watching the chaos below him as students began to babble and shout, as if that would prove themselves to him. He felt a crafty smile carve itself across his face as he very purposefully flicked his hair by tossing his head back, letting the sunlight glint off of the golden earring on his left ear.

The red-haired boy turned and casually walked backstage, whistling softly to himself. As he walked off, he noticed the transfer student staring at him.

Aldini Takumi. An Italian with a Japanese face and Western coloration. An abnormality. If another chef, perhaps a more inferior student, were in his place, Sōma was certain that his speech would have terrified the kid, or at least unnerved him. Greater chefs were unnerved by less, certainly, and the state of the first-years he left behind more than proved that his speech had its usual persuasion woven into it.

But no, Aldini Takumi's clear blue eyes, eyes that read like a picture book for five-year-olds, only showed a raw determination, a passion, a thirst to grow. He had a goal, and he meant to attain that goal. There was nothing that could stand in Takumi's way to success.

It was these kinds of kids that excited Sōma, that made him consider staying in Tōtsuki's influence just so he could watch them grow.

It was these kinds of kids that made him worry for his little sister in all but blood, whose veins had never lit up with passion and whose eyes never filled with fire.

"Aldini-san, right?" Sōma called out. The blond boy jumped slightly, as if surprised that Sōma noticed him at all, before he recomposed himself and called out, " _Si?_ "

"I've got my eye on you, kid," Sōma said, letting an easy grin slip onto his face. "And don't take that as a bad way. We need more of your kind here."

Sōma walked away, but he still heard Takumi's stuttering " _G-grazi_ ," from behind him.

Takumi was still shaken by the encounter with the First Seat when he heard, "And now, to finish the Ceremony, we will have the single student who will be transferring into the high school section talking."

The Italian chef steeled himself to walk onstage and somehow reclaim the audience from the furor that the First Seat had left behind.

"Um, hello?" His tentative words did nothing to quiet the craziness. He cleared his throat. Still nothing.

"OI!" Instant silence. Takumi felt himself growing red, but he pushed forwards. "Um, hi. Aldini Takumi of Italy at your service. I'm not here to graduate from the Academy. To be honest, I don't care if I graduate or not."

Complete silence now.

"All I want to do is make my restaurant great, and this school is just a place to sharpen my skills. While my life doesn't revolve around graduating, I plan to graduate as number one and bring honor to my name. If you want to get in my way, I will crush you. I will do anything to destroy you." Takumi wanted his mezzaluna in his hands, if only as a familiar presence.

"You are nothing to me compared to my restaurant. I care nothing for you. If you want to talk to me, go right ahead, but if you want to be my enemy, please just don't even start a conversation."

Damn it, he was just talking in circles. Takumi thought it prudent to step away from the podium, stiffly bow, and exit then.

He left the audience shell-shocked, Nakiri Erina outraged, and Saiba Sōma cracking up and rolling around from the force of his laughter.

"This kid is insane!" Sōma said between gasps, worrying both Satoshi and Megumi, who were with him. "I love it!"

"That's great, Sōma-san," Megumi said with a slight sigh. "What about it?"

"Do you want us to keep an eye on him?" Satoshi asked, a finger slipping into the ring around his neck as he played with the chain it dangled on.

"Nah, I got it," Sōma said, surprising the other two.

"Sōma-san never pays attention to first-years, though! Even someone like Hayama-kun, who's really talented," Megumi said with mild amazement.

"Hayama-san doesn't have the passion this kid does," Sōma said, leaning back, recovered from his laughing fit. "He's just good. This kid has the potential to be a lot more."

* * *

Takumi felt the burning glares of the other students slice into his back, but he paid them no mind. They were no more hindering than the hungry stares of customers, waiting to be fed. If anything, they were less annoying than even that.

He turned to the partner he drew by lottery. "Um, hello," he tried.

The boy next to Takumi nodded, saying nothing.

"Er, I'm Aldini Takumi," the blond tried again.

"I know," the boy muttered. His rusty brown bangs fell into his face as he leaned back, his hands stuffed into his pockets.

"So what's your name?"

" _Apprenti!_ " Takumi bit back a groan as the teacher at the front of the room called for attention before his partner could respond.

"You are expected to make high-quality dishes from the moment you step foot in a kitchen," the old man said, casting a menacing look about the room. "Experience and position do not matter at all. Because of this, you will get two grades here: an A or an E."

Takumi tilted his head slightly in confusion at that. What was an 'A' and an 'E'? Maybe he should have studied the Japanese grading system in the month he had before coming to Tōtsuki.

"On today's menu: boeuf bourguignon. A French classic that you should all be aware of, but I'll write it on the board anyways." The teacher turned to do as he said. As he faced the board, he kept speaking. "You have two hours. _Commencez à cuire._ "

"Boeuf bourguignon? We served a version of that at the Trattoria," Takumi muttered. His partner gave a noncommittal grunt. "I'll get the basic ingredients and you get the spices?" The brunet shrugged before moving off.

' _I wonder what his problem is.'_ The thought drifted through Takumi's mind before he sternly shook it off and went to obtain beef cheek, stock, and the assorted vegetables for the dish. His partner came back with his arms full of spice containers and a cup containing a clove of garlic balanced on the edge of his lip. Somehow, the boy managed to put all of the spices down at once, flick the cup up, balance the garlic on his nose, and snatch it off all in one fluid motion. He casually put the garlic bulb down next to the other spices.

"I don't even want to know how you did that," Takumi deadpanned. He thought he saw a flicker of a smirk flash across the boy's face before it phased back into emotionlessness.

The cooking was going smoothly until Takumi and his partner walked away from the pot to make sure they got all of their ingredients. When they got back with the ginger they had forgotten, the lid was slightly askew and Takumi could see two boys snickering a couple of stations over. Grimacing, he opened the pot and looked in.

There was a small mountain of salt on his beef. Takumi bit his lip in disgust. "We can't serve this in the next hour," he muttered to himself.

"Leave this to me." Takumi felt himself get shoved aside as his partner took over, a sudden fire burning within him. "Just figure out how to tenderize the meat a different way," the boy instructed, his voice showing more emotion in a few seconds than it had all period as he seemed to smooth the salt over the meat, never minding the temperature; dump the liquid out into the sink; and crank the temperature of the pot up all within a few moments. Takumi blinked before nodding and retrieving more beef.

' _How can I get this to tenderize to the right texture with half the amount of time?'_ Takumi thought frantically. He had gotten another pot after his partner took control of the first one. His eyes fell to the ginger and his mind clicked. _'Wait a minute…'_ He ran back over to the ingredient table.

Thirty minutes later, despite the giggling of the two saboteurs, Takumi and his partner silently walked up to the front of the room. "Please evaluate this," the blond said.

The teacher looked down at the dish and halfheartedly poked it, expecting a stagnant piece of meat. Instead, the meat responded, springing back with the fork.

"What..? Didn't your team have an accident? How did you complete this?"

"I rubbed honey and ginger into the meat before boiling it, and the garnish includes more ginger," Takumi explained. "He took the old meat and turned it into the stock."

Takumi's partner just nodded at the acknowledgement. "I smoked the meat that was ruined and added some of the vegetable ingredients. Onions, garlic, lemongrass. I added some of the honey and ginger into it as well. Then I added a few marrow bones to tie the flavors in together."

"Please enjoy," Takumi said with a slight bow.

A single bite of the boeuf bourguignon sent the teacher into a whirlwind of joy, reminding him of nights sitting around a campfire and falling asleep under the stars, the smell of smoke still wreathing through hair and filling clothes. He felt himself physically relax, as though he were laying on a bed of honey and ginger that enveloped him in a thick embrace, the campfire crackling merrily nearby and filling him with warmth.

"Chapelle-sensei is..!"

"Is he smiling?!"

"What was in that boeuf bourguignon?!"

"I want to try some now…"

The other students began to chatter in awe of the transfer student's strength, completely ignoring his partner, though the other boy preferred that.

"You two… I give this an 'A', but that's only because I don't have the authority to give you a higher grade."

" _Grazi_ ," Takumi said with a bow. Behind him, he could hear the saboteurs begin to panic as their sauce burned and they spilled salt into their dish. As he and his partner walked out of the room, Takumi remembered something.

"I never got your name."

The boy smiled again, though his satisfied smirk didn't vanish this time. He took a hand out of his pocket and saluted Takumi with two fingers, a golden ring glinting off of his pointer finger.

"Ibusaki Shun, Aldini-san. I look forward to working with you." With that, the Golden Faction member turned and walked down a different hall, leaving behind him a flabbergasted Takumi.

* * *

"What do you mean, there's no room?!" Takumi gritted his teeth as he stared the lady down. She was maybe forty years old with greying hair, droopy-sleepy-green eyes, and nary a wrinkle on her face. She winced at the sharpness of his words.

"Calm down, now," she said pleadingly. "We can't just go and accept whoever we want into our dorm! The middle-schoolers get priority in housing, so any rooms that were available went to them. Most other high-schoolers just get apartments around here and commute to and from school."

Takumi glanced at his watch. It was 17:34, and the sun was beginning to disappear from the sky. His hope was disappearing with it, and now he just felt an intense weariness creep over him.

"Fine." The lady perked up, making Takumi sneer slightly at her. "I'll concede. Just tell me: where can I go instead of this miserable dorm?"

Takumi was well aware of the immaculate white floorboards and the cheery lemon yellow paint as he threw these scathing insults at the dorm mistress.

The lady was nonplussed. "Polar Star always has room for more students these days," she said, handing a sheet of paper over to him. "Fumio-san tests the students though; you have to cook something and she has to approve it before you can move in. She says she provides ingredients, though you're welcome to bring anything in case she doesn't have it."

The blond boy rolled his eyes. He was from Italy, for the love of God. He didn't know any of the supermarkets nearby, nor did he plan to explore the town before he finished his studies this season. He would just have to hope that this Fumio person had ingredients he could work with. After getting a map from the lady, a note explaining his circumstances, and detailed instructions on how to get to Polar Star, Takumi left the dorm and headed north.

After twenty minutes of walking, Takumi set his suitcase down with a sigh and tried to massage some life back into his hand. He grimaced at the thick line of angry red that framed his fingers from the heavy suitcase's strap before stretching his arms out and preparing to move off again.

"Um, hello there?"

Takumi jumped slightly before freezing and turning his head slightly over his shoulder to see who had snuck up on him. A girl with a, ahem, voluptuous chest wearing the school uniform was standing right behind him. Her long, magenta hair was swept over one shoulder while her scarlet eyes shone in an amused light. Her expression eased once she ascertained the identity of the boy in front of her.

"Hey, you're the transfer student, right? Er, Aldini-san, wasn't it?" She held her hand out, shifting a paper bag into her left arm to do so. "Sakaki Ryoko, at your service."

" _Piacere di conoscerti_ ," Takumi said, shaking the proffered hand. Ryoko blinked in confusion. "Er, nice to meet you."

"Same to you," Ryoko responded smoothly. "You seem lost. Do you need any help?"

"Ah, _si_ , er, do you know where the Polar Star Dormitory is?" Takumi asked. "There's been a mix-up in my housing and I have to try and place into that dorm."

Ryoko's eyes lit up. "That's my dorm. Actually, you've been in Polar Star boundaries for about five minutes. We own all of the land here. That's where I got my, um, concoction." She held up the suspicious bottle in her arms for him to analyze. "Anyhow, the main building is this way. Come with me."

She led him through a secret dirt path that, unsurprisingly, cut straight through the land and connected directly to the dorm. Takumi was exasperated when he saw just how useless the main road was and unknowingly began to voice his thoughts rather loudly. It took a loud cough of laughter from Ryoko for Takumi to realize just how much he had said.

"You're very different from what your induction speech would imply," Ryoko said with a smirk. "Anyhow, we're here, as you can see. I need to go up to Marui-san's room and deliver this nectar. Good luck with the entrance exam!" And with that, she disappeared into the decrepit house that Takumi was still trying to comprehend through a side entrance that looked suspiciously like a large window.

Ivy curled across the walls, accenting the cracks in the facade. No light shone from any of the windows, and Takumi could hear a crow caw distantly in the background. The house was old, falling apart. What was wrong with this school? Shaking his head, Takumi timidly opened the front door, wincing as its hinges squeaked and it eased itself open with a wheeze.

He walked into a decrepit foyer, dust falling from the ceiling. Takumi wrinkled his nose; that had to be a health-and-safety violation of some kind.

A cloud of smoke seemed to burst from one hallway in a high-pitched _HISSSSS!_ Before Takumi could fully fathom what was happening, he heard a tinny voice shout out, "ROOM 208! YOU MODIFIED THE WEST LOUNGE INTO A SMOKING ROOM AGAIN?! YOU ARE PROVIDED A SHED OUTSIDE TO USE AS A SMOKER! THE NEXT TIME I SEE SMOKE IN THE DORM, I'LL TURN YOU INTO SMOKED CHIPS! DO YOU UNDERSTAND?!"

"Yeah, yeah."

Takumi thought he heard a familiar voice. Before he could reflect on it, a set of thunderous footsteps seemed to storm towards him from his right. Takumi staggered back in time to see a herd of game animals tear through the foyer: deer, rabbits, ducks, even what looked like a quail and a muskrat. Following close behind them was a girl with frantic turquoise eyes and half of her hair tied neatly into a bun and the other half much looser and freer-flowing.

"Usako-cchi! Kamosuke-cchi! Shikanoshin-cchi! Guys, please! Don't leave your cageeeeeeees!" she wailed as she chased them.

"DID YOU KEEP YOUR GIBIER IN YOUR ROOM AGAIN, 116?! DO IT AGAIN AND I'LL SKIN YOU LIKE ONE OF YOUR RABBITS!"

"I'm sorry!" the girl said as she chased her animals down the hallway to Takumi's left.

' _What the hell is this dorm?!'_ Takumi thought, heart racing.

A shadow appeared in the doorway in front of him.

"Oh, so you're the shrimp that the other matron told me about. You're that transfer student, right? I'm the Polar Star dorm mother, Daimaidō Fumio. You can call me Fumio-san. Now, are you ready for your test?"

* * *

 **(I love Shun as a character okay he's freaking adorable and his cup makes me laugh every time)**

 **Takumi's awkward speech is awkward, but at least he didn't get an array of shouting after his butt, right?**

 **As usual, questions? comments? leave me a review! Thanks for your support~**

 **-Shriayle**


	3. A New Home

**I'm so sorry as to how late this chapter is... I really wanted to finish** _ **Devils' Edition**_ **and also college swept me up and kept me busier than I thought possible. Still, I managed to write this out, so hey, that's cool, right?**

 **Also, I've been thinking about publishing a series of romantic one-shots so I could practice my romantic scenes and such. Would you guys be interested in such an anthology? It would be separate from the main stories that I want to work on.**

 **This hasn't been edited by another person because I just really wanted to publish the chapter and didn't wait for Hypocrisy to respond whoops**

 **I've also made the executive decision that the other E10 members that were replaced in this story will reappear as first-years in this story. That was half the reason why it took so long to write this chapter; I wasn't sure if I wanted to put one of them in here. As it is, you'll have to wait for them to make an appearance. You won't have to wait too long, but just hold your horses :)**

 **REPLIES:**

 **FoulIceQueen:** I am horrible about updating aghhhh I'm so sorry D: Thanks for your support! Your favorite? I barely just started what ;w; | **swishyla:** yeah i'm already mildly thrown off by the akira/jun ship and they're not even related. I'm planning on keeping this story the way that I started it out as. And yes, that is partially what the Factions were inspired by.| **l Hypocrisy l** : Takumi's awkwardness mirrors mine, so I just tap into that part of myself and I'm done, to be completely honest OTL Also, I'll get the scissors haha | **HJSDGCE:** I hope the quality hasn't dropped this time ;w; | **EK12:** I mean valid but IDK my friends who are adopted weren't as open as you sound about possibly dating their adoptive siblings so I'm going to stick to my guns. Pseudo-sibling fluff is guaranteed, don't worry :) And whoooo my E10 makes me happy as well. | **Saint Danielle:** Yep! Factions will play a huge role in this AU. Shun is indeed a member of the Golden Faction for reasons that you can parse here and that will be explained in depth in the future. Sōma is a lot more canonical than he's been written in the first two chapters, as is Megumi. You'll see what I mean. | **Love hare gels (Guest):** I'm working on it xD You'll see how their interactions work later, heehee | **Illusionist Owl:** Takumi might have messed up just a little whoops. Sōma loves his li'l sis Erina despite how much she doesn't believe that. | **Dianne060807 (Guest):** Having seen how excited y'all are about updates I feel even worse about not updating for months. No Sōrina here, but check back in my future stories heehee. | **capuuchuu (Guest):** Aaand another update! I love Shun okay he's adorable :3 | **Title Unwanted:** WHOOPS | **Piyototo:** It will indeed be Sōmegu, though it's an already established couple rather than him courting her or vice versa. | **Guest:** I am definitely going through with this story, you can count on that. | **ragriz:** I love that blond Italian so much. I'm kinda sad I didn't put Isami in the story more prominently, but who knows, maybe I can squeeze him in later. | **mikaerusan:** I literally could not think of a way that Takumi could have recovered differently from how Sōma did. I thought about it for dayyyssssss it makes me sad ;w; | **Nameless I am:** Hey, thanks! | **Chimera0211 (Guest):** You're never too late! Your English is fine, haha. | **Izanaomi:** Thank you! I'm glad that it hasn't been completely rejected yet ;w; | **Guest (2):** Agh. I'll go change that ASAP. Thanks! | **BlizzardPhoenix222:** Yep. Takumi's going to have a fun time.

* * *

"Yeah, I'm as ready as I'll ever be," Takumi muttered.

"Are you, really? Where are your ingredients, then?" Fumio asked pointedly, looking at him up and down and not seeing any plastic bags or other telltale signs of foodstuffs.

"I was told you provided some," the blond boy responded, shifting uncomfortably.

"Maybe if you had come earlier," Fumio grunted. "As it is, there are a few leftovers in the kitchen, but I'm certain that that's not enough. You'll have to camp out. We have sleeping bags and tents if you need them." Fumio turned away, making to leave the foyer, eyes closed.

"W-wait! Can I use the leftovers, then?" Fumio's eyes snapped open at the familiar words and she turned back around. The student in front of her, who had just looked thoughtful yet defeated only ten seconds prior, was standing up straight in front of her, his blue eyes flashing with determination and his face set in readiness.

"Hm. There aren't any rules against using them," Fumio admitted. "Fine. Let's take you to the kitchen."

Takumi followed Fumio down hallways and through unused rooms into a brightly lit, sparkling clean kitchen complete with shining stainless steel pots, a neat array of spices all in one cabinet, and a somewhat stocked pantry.

"It's so clean in here," Takumi thought aloud. "I didn't really expect that, but this is a cooking school, after all..."

"Listen up, shrimp. I hate kids that bluff. I hate them more than most other kids. I'm not a young woman. I've tasted hundreds of students' dishes over the years. Do you think that something you throw together from the food here will pass?"

Takumi bit his lip, some of his confidence slipping, but before it could really bother him, he shook his uncertainty off and steeled himself to search through the cupboards. He was pleasantly surprised to find more ingredients than he had thought; since he was in Japan, some of the foods he was thinking about using were readily available as staples, and there were plenty of eggs, onions, and even a few herbs. After poking around for a little bit, Takumi nodded to himself.

"Yeah, I can do this," he said out loud, making Fumio blink in surprise. "Please wait for me to finish this, Fumio-san." Almost immediately following, his hands were a blur of energy, grabbing the various ingredients that he needed and neatly arranging them on the counter. Bowls filled and emptied, cans were opened and liquids carefully drained out. As Fumio waited impatiently, the gentle, fresh scent of citrus floated across the room, startling her.

After all, there hadn't been any citrus left in the kitchen's pantries. It had all been cleaned out by one of the other residents, specifically a sky-blue eyed brunet second-year.

" _Buon appetito_. Please enjoy, Fumio-san," Takumi said, finishing the final step of his presentation and stepping back with a bow.

Fumio glanced down at the plate of food. A light yellow risotto, its citrus-y scent bathing the air, complete with a medley of both green and root vegetables and cubes of something that smelled distinctly like seafood. Fumio felt herself swallow subconsciously as the tantalizing aroma floated up to her.

"I guess this warrants a taste..." she muttered, clicking her chopsticks together. She picked up a portion of it and placed it into her mouth, carefully biting down.

The citrus she had smelled wove around her again, but it was coupled with so many other flavors that she was surprised that she hadn't picked up on them earlier. The seafood was still there, but there was a fresh flavor of asparagus, a succulent twang of what could only be called umami, and it was all tied together with the earthy texture of the rice. She felt herself thrown back into a carefree childhood, one where she just ran in fields and indulged in sunlight, one filled with innocence and happiness. Fumio felt chills run up her back; only one other student in recent memory had been able to craft something this refined with only leftovers for admittance into the dorm. Fumio looked at Takumi in a new light now.

After all, Saiba Sōma was more than successful now.

"Where did you get the lemon from?" Fumio asked. "I thought you didn't have any ingredients."

"I thought I didn't have any either," Takumi said. Fumio raised an eyebrow as Takumi picked up a plastic bag filled with what looked like yellow strips. "My brother snuck these into my carry-on for me to enjoy later. They're candied lemon peels that he made himself. I was teasing him about his not being able to make them a few months ago, and he's been working on them ever since."

Fumio made a noncommittal grunt, a thoughtful finger on her chin. "Here. You've got room 207. You're admitted," Fumio said, handing a key over to Takumi, who smiled widely and bowed to her with a firm " _Grazie_." Before Takumi could leave the room, Fumio called after him, "It's the boys' turn to bathe now, if you wanted to do that at some point."

"Ah, _grazie_ again!" Takumi called after him. He walked up the stairs to drop his stuff off at his new room before heading to the bathroom. He expected to be alone.

So when he opened the door, a towel wrapped around his waist and his toiletries in his hand, he nearly screamed when he saw his partner from earlier in the corner of the bath, eyes closed as if he were deep in thought, though that small detail was invisible. His auburn locks were slightly messier as they were damp with steam and clung to his face, further hiding his eyes. His chin barely moved up, signifying that he wasn't asleep or something and had heard the racket of Takumi jumping to the side.

"A-ah, hello there, Ibusaki-san," Takumi said cautiously.

Shun held up a hand and flicked his fingers outward, much like the way an octopus moves. Takumi wasn't sure what to make of that.

The blond Italian awkwardly lowered himself into the bath.

"...you want to get into a Faction, don't you?" This time, Takumi actually jumped when Shun spoke to him.

"Uh, I mean..." Takumi trailed off. "Doesn't everyone?"

"Saiba-senpai doesn't take interest in everyone," Shun mentioned offhandedly. He leaned back further into the wall. "Isshiki-senpai thought it was bizarre."

"What's bizarre? Who?" Takumi asked, getting more and more confused by this enigma of a classmate. He saw the corners of Shun's mouth flick upwards in a hint of a smile before the boy got out of the bath.

"I'll see you later, Aldini-san," the maroon-haired boy said, bowing slightly as he quietly left the bathroom.

* * *

Takumi flopped down onto his bed, letting his still-wet blond hair flop onto the cotton sheets. He sighed, staring at the tiles on the ceiling. It was the first time in his sixteen years that he had been apart from his twin brother, and the lingering loneliness was hitting him with much more force now, making him swallow thickly. He idly thought if it was a good idea for him to be studying at Tōtsuki, if he was away from his brother for so long a period of time. They had promised to stay together.

 _'Is pride worth it?'_ Takumi thought, biting his lip. He stared at the ceiling with more force, trying to distract himself, focusing on one ceiling tile in particular.

He saw the tile quake slightly. Raising an eyebrow, Takumi stood up on the bed, staring at the tile even more intently.

When it slid out of place and a face framed with light brown hair and complete with a benevolent smile appeared in its place, Takumi was so startled at he shouted out and fell back onto the bed. He was frozen with shock as the face that appeared smiled at him even more widely at his rather explosive reaction.

"Hey there, transfer student!" the face sang out. "Come on! We're having your welcome party, and there are a few people coming you're going to want to talk to. It's just a couple of doors down!" With that, it vanished.

Takumi found himself wandering down the two doors and into the busting atmosphere without any idea of what was going to happen next. He opened the door cautiously, calling out, "Hello?"

He was greeted with the words "I TOLD YOU!" Takumi flinched in surprise before sliding into the room, even more cautious than ever.

"I'M BUSY STUDYING FOR THE WRITTEN EXAMS! IF YOU'RE HAVING A PARTY, HAVE IT SOMEWHERE ELSE! WHY ARE YOU ALWAYS PARTYING IN MY ROOM?!" A gangly black-haired boy with round glasses was shouting at the collection of other teens in his room. He tugged at the collar of his shirt with a nervous finger, glancing at his books anxiously. Takumi just slid in and sat on the floor, feeling significantly more off-guard than he had felt just seconds prior.

"Well, you have the biggest room," the orange-haired girl that Takumi had seen earlier pointed out. She looked significantly calmer, now that she wasn't chasing a herd of game animals around. "And it's always clean in here!" she said with a relaxed sigh as she sprawled across the cot in the room, ignoring the boy's outburst of "GET OFF OF MY BED!" Takumi looked around the room; Ryoko, the raspberry-haired girl from earlier, was in an animated conversation with two other boys their age, one with long hair that was bleached down the center and the other with short, spiky, dark hair. Shun was sitting on the floor and leaning against a bookshelf, absent-mindedly playing with a cup by bouncing it up and down his lip again. The brunet boy he had seen in the ceiling earlier wasn't in the room, but Takumi realized that he would soon re-enter, once he gathered more people (so the blond Italian assumed).

"Oh? Hey, the transfer student passed Fumio-san's test!" Ryoko said, interrupting the conversation between the two boys in front of her.

"Hey, congratulations, man!" Suddenly, Takumi was surrounded by other students. The only one who hadn't crowded around him was Shun, who was watching from the side with more than a little bit of amusement.

"A-ah, please, not so close," Takumi said, backing away a tiny bit from the overenthusiastic students.

"Wow! Such excitement is in the air!" a voice exclaimed from behind them. The brunet boy from earlier burst through the door, arms wide open with ecstasy. "See, friends? This is youth! All of us living under the same roof and eating from the same kitchen! This is what dorm life should be about! This sense of camaraderie! Family!"

"Now, if you could just stop using the loft to organize these things, it would be really great," Shun muttered from the side, snatching the cup away from his mouth.

"Ah! You must be Aldini Takumi-kun!" Takumi's hand was quickly grabbed and shook rather vigorously by the boy. "My name is Isshiki Satoshi. You can call me Isshiki-senpai! I'm a second year at Tōtsuki, and everyone else here is a first-year like you."

Takumi gripped Satoshi's hand much more firmly, nodding his head as he shook it.

"Here, let's have a toast!" Ryoko said, passing a paper cup of something over to Takumi. The blond Italian looked at it and smelled it suspiciously, recoiling at the smell of alcohol drifting from the liquid. "Oh, don't worry, it's not enough to make it actually alcoholic! It's below the legal amount," Ryoko affirmed, beaming.

"Is it really okay to be this loud?" Takumi asked uncertainly as the students around him shouted more and more.

"Eh, we're fine," Yūki said, flicking her hand in nonchalance. "We're surrounded by a forest."

"Doesn't Fumio-san get bothered..?" Takumi tried to ask.

"HEEEY, KIDS!" a raucous screech burst through the pipes. Takumi feared the worst.

"I'VE GOT SOME DAIKON IN SOY SAUCE, COME AND GET IT!"

"THANKS, FUMIO-SAN!" The two boys, now introduced to Takumi as Aoki and Saito, responded before bustling out of the room.

"Oh, and Satoshi-kun! You've got some guests waiting for you!" Fumio added.

"Oh, I was wondering when they would come! Thank you, Fumio-san!" Satoshi responded, quickly leaving the room as well.

"Hey, you two! Come back before Fumio-san goes off on her 'Elite Ten' spiel again!" Yūki called after the two boys.

"The 'Elite Ten'?" Takumi repeated.

"Y-you don't know what the Elite Ten is?" Ryoko asked, surprised.

"It must be a foreigner thing, not knowing about the Elite Ten," Yūki said offhandedly. Takumi felt just a little bit insulted by that, but his curiosity overwhelmed any other emotion.

"The Elite Ten are the highest members of the student body." The girls and Takumi jumped slightly when Shun started speaking. "They're a committee of the ten top students from all three grades of high school. Tōtsuki is first and foremost a culinary institution. It's run by the best chefs, the ones that should know what's going on and gets the first choice in resources, among other things. The Elite Ten are those specific chefs. Everyone has to listen to them; if enough of the Elite Ten ask for a change, not even the Director can dispute it. It's the highest decision-making entity in the Academy." He sipped at his drink after his final word.

"Wow, Ibusaki-san. That's the most I've ever heard you way at one time," Yūki said, only half joking.

"Years ago, when Polar Star was full and well-known, much of the Elite Ten came from this very dormitory," Ryoko added. "There was once a period of time where the entire Elite Ten came from Polar Star students. Fumio-san loves talking about that time. She calls it the 'Golden Age of Polar Star'."

"Sounds like some sort of anime title," Takumi commented.

"Hmm, never thought about it that way. Anyhow, do you want to try some Golden Tea?" Ryoko offered with a smile.

"Golden Tea? In Polar Star?" The first-years all became wide-eyed and turned slowly to look out the door.

Satoshi was back with his guests, a tall, red-haired young man with sparkling amber eyes and a golden earring and a willowy blue-haired girl with warm honey-colored eyes and a golden ring. It had been the former that had spoken, with a crooked grin splitting his face in two.

"Pour me one too, Sakaki-chan!" he said with a boisterous laugh. Ryoko swallowed lightly before pouring a cup out with shaking hands and passing it over to him. He took a sip before closing his eyes and thinking.

"Sōma-kun, you're being rude," the girl with him said in an admonishing tone, rolling her eyes lightly. Her soft voice somehow hardened with those words, but it slipped back into its tender tone when she turned to the first-years herself. "I apologize for his behavior, Sakaki-chan, Yoshino-chan, Aldini-kun."

"Ehh?! How do the First and Third Seats know our names?!" Yūki spluttered out, turning bright red at her acknowledgement.

"Oh, I told them!" Satoshi said, poking his head out of the doorway where he had been standing. "Don't forget that I'm a member of the Elite Ten myself. And you first-years are a major part of my life, so the entirety of the Elite Ten has heard many things about you! Except for you, transfer student, but you did just arrive only today, so you can't blame me."

"How could we forget, Mr. 'I'm-in-Polar-Star-hear-me-roar'," Sōma snorted before putting the cup down. "And Sakaki-chan? Have you tried boiling green tea into the rice when you make it before making the tea out of it? Or perhaps including other spices into that mix? It might infuse other flavors into the tea that you'd want there. This is still pretty good, so don't stress out about it."

"A-ah, no, I haven't considered that," Ryoko said, still nervous and mildly star-struck.

"Saiba-senpai," Shun said, standing up and bowing shallowly to the Golden Faction leader. "It's good to see you again."

"Likewise, Ibusaki-kun," Sōma responded with a nod.

"H-hey! How do you know him, Ibusaki-cchi?" Yūki asked, pointing at him accusingly.

"...do you forget that I am a member of the Golden Faction as well, Yoshino-san?" Shun asked, grinning slightly at her discomfort. "And don't call me that."

"O-oh yeah. That's right." Yūki happily ignored the latter half of his statement.

"STOP GOING THROUGH MY FRIDGE!" Takumi choked on the sip of tea he had taken as he heard Zenji shout again.

"I'm kind of skeptical about this dorm, now..." the blond Italian muttered.

"Oh, don't worry," Megumi responded to him. "You'll fit right in. Polar Star has a way of doing that to you." She had a wistful nostalgia about her as she looked around, with an air about her that didn't feel very happy, yet was definitely not sad. "They embrace you and your faults and help you succeed no matter what. It's one of the most supportive atmospheres in this Academy."

"Did you used to live in here?" Takumi asked, noticing her mood shift.

"Hmm? Oh yes, Sōma-kun and I lived in here starting from our second year of middle school," she explained. "Fumio-san didn't think that twelve-year-olds could survive in a dorm setting, with teenagers years older than them, but when we were able to prove ourselves twice in a row she finally let us in."

"You mean she finally let _you_ in," Sōma said, turning to tease Megumi. "It took you three months to finally make it."

Megumi blushed but gave Sōma a mild glare as she did so. "Why do you always point that out?" she muttered.

"Because you get so flustered," he said with a wink, throwing himself at her in a hug and knocking them both to the ground.

"Those two need to get a room," Shun muttered. "This happens at every Faction meeting too."

"You get used to it," Satoshi said, smiling and crossing his arms. Takumi glanced back over to him and started in shock when he realized that Satoshi was clad in only his pink apron.

"It's Isshiki-senpai's 'Before I Knew It, I Was Only Wearing An Apron' costume!" Yūki said when Takumi turned to her, trying to comprehend what was happening. Takumi struggled to find words before deciding to give up. The entire dorm was filled with the kinds of people he hadn't ever imagined himself talking to. All of the chefs Takumi had known were adults, grown and mature. These kids, they just experimented with whatever it was that they had. It was oddly refreshing, to be honest.

"Oh, yeah, Aldini-san, right?"

Sōma had gotten back up now, and he looked more serious than Takumi had ever seen him.

"I've heard tell that you wanted to enter a Faction." Takumi blinked before nodding stiffly. How had the red-haired teenager known? He hadn't really decided on it until about half an hour prior.

"Well, there's a bit of a process to joining, but first, I'll describe the two Factions to you."

* * *

 _"The two Factions are pillars of Tōtsuki success. They were established in the 62nd Generation, when the third years of the Elite Ten noticed that they were leaving Tōtsuki to inferior hands. To prevent this, the Seats decided to divide into two and train the students that showed the most promise. Traditionally, the First and Second Seats are leaders of different Factions, if only because the two Factions are equal in every way except for their focus. Despite what anyone would tell you and what you would think, there is little to no difference between Factions. The only difference, and this is important, is what the Faction strives towards."_

"Are you ready, Tsukasa-san?" The white-haired boy narrowed his pale eyes. Gone were the nervous tremors, the uncertainty that plagued him. All that there was now was him and the other boy, one with hair as bright as fire and eyes that flashed with confidence.

"Of course, Saiba-san," he responded, locking eyes.

"This Shokugeki is over the First Seat of the Elite Ten for next year, the first year of the 92nd Generation. This is to be a battle between Factions, with each participant representing their Faction. Would the two chefs please present their membership badge?" The maroon-haired girl narrating was sans her usual sly smirk and wore a facial expression so emotionless that looked as though it could be carved from stone.

Sōma gestured to his ear with a wayward hand. Eishi pulled the silver chain out from under his shirt so that it rested on top of his chef's uniform.

"Thank you. The theme is vegetarian dishes, and there must be some sort of pseudo-meat product, as was chosen by other representatives of the Factions. Chefs will get three hours to cook two courses for the five judges. All ingredients and appliances have been obtained and set up. The timer will count down thirty seconds before sounding an alarm, signaling when the time to cook has begun."

There was a pause, a hitch in each boy's throat as their hearts began to pound faster and faster, watching the seconds count down.

 _CLANG!_

And they were off.

 _"The Silver Faction represents the old. They are the classic dishes, the solid techniques developed over the thousands of years of cooking. They research each ingredient, learn how to harness its full potential, and unlock its secrets for their benefit. The Silver Faction strives to be purely cooking, turning food into an icon to be idolized by those people who are privy to its secrets. Everything the Silver Faction creates will be a piece of perfection, will seem to be heaven in every bite, as they have developed those recipes for generations before they are allowed to be shown to the world. Being in the Silver faction means that you will be taught the techniques that chefs worldwide crave to learn. You will know the techniques of Shinomiya Kojirō and Dōjima Gin as well as your own. You will be able to thrive in the world of chefs, knowing that your skills and talents are desirable no matter where you go."_

Eishi took a deep breath before allowing his hands to take over. Almost mechanically, he chopped vegetables while also pouring out the oil he wanted to fry his tofu in as well as adding a final flourish of salt into the eggs he was beating in between the other tasks. The boy became robotic, knowing exactly how to time everything so that he could align his cooking times precisely and maximize the hours he would spend. The audience that focused on Eishi were wowed by his seemingly perfect sense of timing and confidence, as Eishi's actions didn't include tasting his dishes at all. His face was set in a determined mask, one that didn't let up as he carefully seasoned with salt and prepared each facet of flavor. His form and perfection reminded the audience of a stalking cat, one that placed its paws perfectly silently as it slunk up to its prey and prepared to take it down. His visage was cold as ice; he could have been cut from the cold substance, even, if he weren't moving with such a quick precision that he was so obviously alive.

 _"The Golden Faction represents the new. They are the idiosyncrasies, the whimsical ideas that are allowed to bear fruit. Their dishes are nowhere near as polished as the Silver Faction's. Their ingredients don't have to be the best, nor do they want them to be. The Golden Faction does not worship food and flavor, but works beside it to turn it into artworks the likes of which have never been seen before. Of course, many a time the Golden Faction has slipped. It has also succeeded far beyond anything that the Silver Faction could hope to accomplish. Being in the Golden Faction means you can hone your creativity, but it also means that nothing you suggest will be frowned upon. Rather, it will be encouraged. It will be allowed to take hold of you until you have perfected it on your own. You will know the mindsets of Saiba Jōichirō, of Mizuhara Fuyumi. You will know how to survive in the world, in case your plans don't pan out the way you wanted them to."_

If Eishi was ice, Sōma was fire. His every movement showed his energy and passion, from the shower of white cubes of tofu that flew through the air into his pan to the flick of oil that coated the bottom of his pan. His eyes were alight with life, his mouth splitting in a huge grin as he cooked. He so very obviously enjoyed what he was doing, and with each slice his grin turned into a confident smirk. The glow in his golden eyes was the complete opposite to the steel in Eishi's, and the two side by side cut such different figures that the judges were in awe of how they seemed to be complete antonyms of each other. Each one of Sōma's moves was one that seemed to embrace the passion that he sought from the ones he would train in the future, setting forests on fire and bathing the land in flames. Each one of Eishi's moves was as precise and cold as ice, splitting the earth neatly as he carved his path. Either way, each would create his own path in the world, changing the landscape from what it was, forever altering it.

And yet, there could be only one winner.

 _"And though the Factions are equal, they are both stronger than the other. So, Aldini Takumi..."_

"AFTER AN HOUR OF DELIBERATION, THE JUDGES HAVE SPOKEN! WINNING BY A CLOSE 3-2, SAIBA SŌMA!" The redhead bowed to the cheering audience before locking Eishi in a headlock and donning a feral grin. The white-haired boy struggled to escape his grip futilely before laughing quietly and responding just as rambunctiously in a fit of uncharacteristic flailing.

 _"Do you have what it takes to join my Faction?"_

* * *

 **Thanks for reading :) I hope the next update doesn't take nearly as long as this one did...**

 **-Shriayle**


	4. Transforming Furikake

**THE UPDATE STILL TOOK FOREVER I'M SORRY D: I had to study for finals and finish an animation by the deadline (which, incidentally, was on Saturday, so now I have so much more time to work on other things~)**

 **I had a quick question: which faction would you guys sort Hayama Akira into? I had a bit of an idea as to where to put him, but I want to hear your input on this. It could sway my decision, so choose wisely ;)**

 **One final note: this once again wasn't edited by anyone. I feel like I like the way this chapter flowed, so I didn't think it needed another eye to look it over. However, if you see something you find bizarre, feel free to let me know :)**

 **REPLIES:**

 **swishyla:** Eishi and Sōma get along pretty well, to be honest. And aww, that's sweet of you to say xD | **Saint Danielle:** THIS AU IS MORE AU THAN ANY OTHER AU I HAVE DONE. That's a blatant lie, haha. I love writing the background for universes, it makes stories so much more fun to work out~ :) There's more Faction detail in here, though not much as to why they don't live in PS anymore (that's a detail I'll work with later). | **Guest:** IT'S UP. IT'S BEEN DONE. It needs to be updated too, haha. | **Eramis8:** The Factions are rather important but they're not the type to war against each other. It's more friendly competition. And yep, Sōma upholds the ideas of Saiba Jōichirō still. | **FoulIceQueen:** Gold and silver were too symbolic not to use, let's be real. And thanks for the support! I just feel bad that I can't write as much as I used to, but classes and homework and labs and n_n | **L'Oreal (Guest):** Yep, that's why they wear jewelry. And nope, most of the E10 are pretty evenly split, to be honest. I've included a list of who's in which Faction on the bottom of this chapter. (at least, by this chapter of the story) And Azami is a part of the storyline, right? ;) | **Izanaomi (Guest):** Megumi's Third Seat, actually. And yep, welcoming party is agoooo. It's part of the PS culture, no? | **Gosu (Guest):** Thanks! I try~ And _Welcome to Hell_ will be continued before 2016 ends I swear | **Anonymous Person (Guest):** Yeah, there are a few smaller revisions to the E10 and the Factions are going to be fun to play with later :P You got it quite right~| **kapuuchuu (Guest):** *prostrates self* FORGIVE ME FOR MAKING YOU WAIT NEARLY A MONTH I AM SO SORRY. | **l Hypocrisy l:** i did the thing without telling you my apologies. And yep, the Factions will be great fun to use later. | **annashina:** Your wish is my command! | **ranchan-akari:** Sōma loves the nervous guy, haha. | **Monii (Guest):** You haven't had to wait as long as some of these lovelies, but thanks for your support!

* * *

"MORE FOOD! MORE FOOD!"

Takumi was startled from his conversation with Sōma by Yuki's cheer. The red-haired third-year perked up at the mention of food. He smiled openly at the exchanging of little snacks that was made before his eyes lit up even further and a wide grin practically split his face in half.

"Hey, why don't I make something?" he called out, bringing a halt to the party as the Polar Star members turned to him with bulging eyes and stuttering mouths. He noticed their surprise and waved a hand casually at them in response. "Come on, it's been a while since I got to cook casually."

"As long as it's not another squid dish, Sōma-kun," Megumi said with a sigh as she put her arm through his elbow and interlaced their fingers. Sōma pouted, sticking his lower lip out slightly, which Megumi poked lightly with her other hand. "Don't test out your crazy experiments on them," she admonished.

Sōma shrugged. "I had a feeling that they wouldn't want to try chocolate-marshmallow-seaweed wrapped squid, so I wasn't going to offer any," he said nonchalantly, pout now gone. He ignored the sounds of disgust at the mention of the clashing ingredients in the squid dish. "Maybe Eizan-kun or Kuga-kun would be a better audience for that."

"They know the rules. Whichever loses control of his temper first in the middle of a meeting has to try your dishes," Satoshi added in, smiling slightly. "It's been peaceful ever since we instated that rule, actually."

 _'What are Elite Ten meetings like with this guy leading them?!'_ Takumi felt himself thinking, his eyes widening slightly in horror.

"Wait, wait! Saiba-senpai is going to cook for us?" Yuki squeaked, finally regaining control over her voice and her train of thought.

Sōma grinned at her impishly. "It's time for you to experience something Yukihira-style, kids!" he crowed before standing up quickly, dragging Megumi with him. The blue-haired girl yelped in shock and slight pain before fixating Sōma with a stern stare. He smiled sheepishly in apology. "I'll just run down to the kitchen. Yoshino-chan, can you show me where the eggs and chickens are?"

"O-of course!" Yuki said, scrambling to her feet and following after Sōma and Megumi like a lost puppy.

"What are the rest of you doing, still in here?" Satoshi asked, hands on his hips, somehow back in his school uniform. When he received questioning looks in response, he pointed after Sōma. "The First Seat is going to cook for you, probably with the Third Seat helping. Don't you want to watch?"

The other dorm members looked at each other wildly before rushing out of Zenji's room and down to the kitchen, trying their hardest not to push each other down the stairs on accident.

"I'm still a bit hungry right now, though..." Ryoko muttered to herself as they hurried through the house.

"Here, I've got some stuff I smoked earlier," Shun offered, pulling out a container of various kinds of jerky and cheese from seemed like nowhere.

"Do you mean when Fumio-san chewed you out before?" Zenji asked, taking some of the cheese. After only a bite, he sighed and said, "There are never any mistakes in your work, Ibusaki-san!" Shun just ignored him, turning subtly so that the container was facing Takumi. Takumi reached out to try a flake of something he couldn't identify. He sniffed it curiously but found himself incapable of sensing a distinct flavor profile. He slowly took a bite out of it.

He had barely nibbled on the meat, but already flavor was exploding on the tip of his tongue. There were astringent, bitter flavors, but these were equally buoyed and pushed back by layers of curry and lamb. From that one tiny bite, Takumi felt that he was watching the sun rise over the mountains while he stood in the middle of a little village in India. The warmth of cloves and the sweetness of cinnamon was wrapped up by the innate smokiness of the meat and also by a smoky flavor fueled by cumin, and each separate flavor profile wrapped around him like a warm blanket. Takumi looked at the piece of what looked like leather in his hand, so innocuously hiding such a deep, rich world of flavor. And yet...

"It feels almost too rich," he muttered to himself as he took another little bite. Already the flavors felt as though they were overwhelming him, and though it wasn't an uncomfortable situation, it wasn't any more comfortable either. It was just something he felt.

"Hmm, that's what Nakiri-senpai told me, too," Shun said with a shrug. "She said something about too many chemical profiles in the blend. I should really ask Hayama-san for advice too."

"Maybe add fennel?" Takumi mused out loud. "It has medicinal properties, right? I think it helps with digestion or something."

Shun blinked and stared at him indiscreetly through his bangs before nodding slowly in consideration. "I guess that's true. That's Arato-san's area of expertise," the auburn-haired boy responded. "I didn't think many others knew much of medicinal herbs."

"Oh, I don't," Takumi said. "I mean, my grandmother was an apothecary, but that was a long time ago." He paused realizing he didn't recognize a name. "Who's Arato-san?"

Shun was more visibly taken aback now. "Arato Hisako? Nakiri Erina's aide?" he expounded. "You've probably seen her around. Shoulder-length pink hair, reddish-brown eyes, always looks peeved?"

"Oh, her," Takumi answered lamely.

By this time, they had gotten to the kitchen. Takumi hurriedly shoved the rest of the jerky into his mouth, choking slightly on the amount of flavor that burst into his mouth. Shun watched him clear his throat, cheeks slightly reddened, with a hint of sarcastic amusement. "Is my smoked lamb that bad, Aldini-san?" he asked, not responding to Takumi's flustered denials with much more than a smirk.

"Wow. You got Ibusaki-cchi to joke with you," Yuki said, surprised.

"Don't call me that, Yoshino-san."

Takumi only half-listened to their brief banter, mesmerized by the sight in front of him. While Megumi was sautéing what looked like an entire chicken, broken down into smaller pieces, in sesame oil, Sōma was cracking at least two dozen eggs into a bowl, throwing the eggshells into the trash can without having to look, all with a bored expression on his face. The blue-haired girl seemed satisfied with the meat in front of her and turned the heat off before nonchalantly picking up the entire cast-iron pan full of chicken and tossing everything into a large pot. She peered in and tossed in a creamy-yellow pile of something before opening up four different bottles and a sugar container and stepping back.

"Sōma-kun, I'm ready to switch," she called out.

" _Hai!_ " he responded, passing the bowl and two chopsticks over to her while picking up two of the bottles. Takumi blinked as Sōma completely ignored the measuring cups and spoons hanging helpfully next to the stove in favor of just pouring the liquids into the pot, once again not looking at what he was doing. Instead, he was smelling the bottle in the other hand and skimming over the ingredients. "This bonito broth seems a bit saltier than normal broths..." he said rather loudly, though obviously meaning to talk to himself.

"Do you need water or do you think the chicken will provide enough stock, then?" Megumi asked without skipping a beat, still working on beating the eggs into an even mixture with a pair of chopsticks. "And would you mind if I added something to these eggs?"

"Go for it. And if you can grab me a rice bowl of water, that should do it," Sōma said in response. "Also, I've got some things in mind for the eggs, so don't start cooking them quite yet, please." He then picked up a large pinch of sugar and flung it into the pot, following it up by pouring a splash from the two remaining bottles.

"Sounds good." Megumi walked over to the fridge and opened it, grabbing a carton of something. She looked startled at how light it was. "How is it that cream is always used so much wherever I go?" she muttered to herself as she poured the rest of the carton into the eggs and threw the now empty container out. She wandered over to the spice rack, glanced up at a few, and took a couple of bottles down to sprinkle the green flakes into the eggs. She finally grabbed the amount of water that Sōma had asked for and passed it to him when he held his hand out expectantly. "I'm done adding to the eggs, as well."

Sōma turned the heat down with a casual flick of his hand before turning and taking the egg mix from Megumi. "You can watch the pot if you want," he said casually, a devilish smirk stretching across his face. "Maybe counting down the minutes while eating the character for 'man'. It definitely helped, no?"

Megumi blushed brightly. "That was two years ago, Sōma-kun," she muttered in response.

"Wow, we're old," Sōma responded, pausing in his search for herbs. He shook his head to dispel that horrible idea before pulling out a bottle of pepper and sprinkling some in.

Takumi was taken aback by their synchrony. Every movement had flowed between people and their timing was somehow never off. Even when he added his own extra flavors, Sōma hadn't asked Megumi what she put into the eggs, as though he already knew somehow. The red-haired third-year heated up another pan and poured the egg mixture in, stirring it the second it hit the pan. Meanwhile, Megumi had poured the pot's contents into a container, removing the pieces of chicken and setting them on a cutting board. She swiftly stashed the container of liquid in the refrigerator, grabbing a knife on her way back to the cutting board. Immediately she started to debone the chicken and cut it into neat little pieces, her knife and the bones flying. Yuki in particular watched with wide eyes as the blue-haired girl had the entire chicken deboned in only a few seconds.

Sōma turned the heat off of the pan and poured the now fluffy egg curds into a bowl before taking up another knife and checking on the container in the fridge. Smirking at what he saw, he picked up the container and flipped it upside down, slamming it onto the cutting board he had set out in front of him. The dorm members jumped, startled, but continued to watch in overall silence as he effortlessly diced the oily, gelatinous golden sheet he had made. In an unused corner, the three rice makers set up began to steam in unison.

"It's done!" Sōma said while Megumi finished chopping up the last few pieces of green onion.

"Where are the bowls, Isshiki-kun?" Megumi asked, drying her hands off with a washcloth.

"Here we go," the second-year responded, bringing over a stack of bowls.

"Let me prepare the rest of it first, guys," Sōma complained, picking up a neat stack of what looked like shot glasses to Takumi. He began to spoon in the gelatin and the egg into the smaller containers while Satoshi and Megumi exchanged an exasperated look.

"Sōma-kun, you're making the residents wait," Megumi said, slapping his back lightly to make him stop.

Sōma looked at the waiting first-years apologetically. "Just a few more seconds!" he called out jovially, steadfastly continuing to allot egg and gelatin. Megumi just smacked her forehead with a hand before helping Sōma arrange the food they had made.

"What did you make, Saiba-senpai?" Takumi asked hesitantly.

"Furikake!" he responded gleefully.

Takumi had no idea what that was. Judging by Yuki's, Ryoko's, Shōji's, and Daigo's reactions, the food itself wasn't very spectacular.

Sōma chuckled at their disappointed looks. "But this furikake is a special kind. Take a look, Aldini-san," he said, turning around. He was holding a bowl of white rice as well as one of the smaller containers he had just put together. As Takumi watched, he carefully poured the container's contents on top of the white rice.

Takumi gaped as the gelatinous cubes he had seen before seemed to melt into the rice, coating the egg in golden oil in the process. A heavenly aroma began to float through the room, one that was filled with the heartiness of chicken and the lightness of oil. Takumi could pick out the individual scents of herbs, from fresh to intense as well, unlike with Shun's jerky.

"Don't forget your vegetables," Megumi said wryly as she sprinkled some slices of green onion on top of the bowl that Sōma then offered to Takumi. The blond first-year blinked in blank shock before dazedly taking the bowl and a pair of chopsticks. He scooped some of the rice up and placed it into his mouth.

Takumi's eyes flew open. Immediately, he was sent back to a time when he was younger, running around in his family's country home with Isami. It was one of the many days he remembered fondly. They had been tasked with fetching the eggs from the chicken coop. Takumi had easily found a good eight or so, but Isami had dropped his basket soon after he rambunctiously ran around the corner. Isami's eyes had grown wide as he stared at the carnage of six splattered eggs and looked back at Takumi guiltily.

 _"Fratellone,"_ he had whimpered. _"I'm sorry."_

Takumi had said nothing in response, just taking half of his eggs and putting it into Isami's basket amid his brother's protests. He had then picked up a handful of dirt and covered up the smashed eggs.

 _"This'll be our little secret, okay, Isami?"_ he had said, giving his brother a wink before shoving him slightly in an effort to get him to start walking back to the house again.

Takumi felt a longing to see his brother again, wrapped up in the innocent warmth of that old memory. It had to have been at least eight years ago when that happened, back when his brother was little more than a clumsy collection of limbs and he himself wasn't much better. His teeth felt an odd resistance in the overall fluff of the eggs that, rather than detracting from the attractiveness of the dish, contributed to it. The herbs that both Sōma and Megumi had decided to throw in combined in a flurry of freshness and flavor in his mouth like the breezes that swept through his family's summer home, tantalizing his taste buds and making him want to keep eating. It felt like a reminder of what he fought for and what he was at Tōtsuki to accomplish, and that reminder was both one he needed and one that rejuvenated him.

"Transforming Furikake Gohan, Yukihira-style," Sōma said somewhat eloquently. "Not the furikake you guys were expecting, I'd hope!"

"What's Yukihira-style?" Daigo mumbled around his chopsticks, somehow continuously devouring the delicious food like a ravenous beast at the same time.

"It's the style of the restaurant that I work at! Or really, the style that my pops taught me to cook in that I've been taking a step further ever since," Sōma explained. "We at Restaurant Yukihira pride ourselves on our innovative style, and this is just one of the dishes we offer on our menu." He gestured grandly to the bowl of rice, egg, and aspic that he held in his hand. "Every part of the chicken comes together in this simple meal, all tied together with white rice. It's a quick, light, fresh bite to eat on the go!"

"This is different from your usual Transforming Furikake," Satoshi commented with a thoughtful furrow in his brow, having eaten a morsel himself. "What did you put in it this time?"

"I put in oregano and a touch of fennel," Megumi volunteered. "I cut up a few slivers of sesame leaf and mixed them with the green onion as well."

"That crunch you feel is from breadcrumbs and coarse salt stirred into the eggs, and I also took a moment to flick some basil into the mixture," Sōma added. "Not sure how good that part tastes, but I felt like trying it, so why not?"

Takumi recognized the Golden Faction's focus in the flippant remark that Sōma uttered, and that only reminded him of what the First Seat had asked him.

 _"Do you have what it takes to join my Faction?"_

"Saiba-senpai," he spoke up, catching everyone's attention and also unknowingly interrupting a conversation that Satoshi had sparked with Sōma. Upon noticing the latter, Takumi flushed slightly and tried to wave off the curious looks, but Sōma ended up forcing it out of him. "How do I prove that I could join your Faction?"

Sōma's curious look slowly turned into a wide, mischievous smirk. "I knew you had the spark," he crowed loudly, clapping enthusiastically. He whipped around to grab Megumi's shoulders, shaking her slightly, much to Takumi's shock, before pulling her to him in a rough hug. "See, Megumi-chan? I _told you_."

"Yes, I heard him too, Sōma-kun," the blue-haired girl responded patiently, not looking surprised by Sōma's happy reaction, instead patting the top of his head fondly. "You did well this time."

"This time?!" Sōma spluttered to her, jokingly glaring as he held her at arm's length now. "I'll have you know, I know what I'm doing more than just _some of the time_." He pouted at her again, making Takumi feel mildly awkward, having started the entire discussion.

"Saiba-senpai, Aldini-kun is waiting for your response," Satoshi said, gesturing towards the mortified first year.

"I-it's alright! You don't have to worry about me! I'll just find out another way, that's all!" he said, waving his arms in front of him in an attempt to brush off his embarrassment.

"Nah, it's alright," Sōma reassured. "They just thought it would take more to convince you."

"After trying this?" Takumi asked, gesturing towards his bowl. It was already half empty, and Takumi didn't even remember eating more than the first bite. "I can't imagine how I could get to this level by myself."

"That's the spirit!" Satoshi said cheerfully, once again clad in only a pink apron as if changing into it were some sort of signal of his joy.

"Well, Aldini-san, I don't know about letting you join quickly until you've witnessed something that the Silver Faction can offer you as well, but since I'm already here, I can already start the testing process with you," Sōma said with a gleam in his eye. "Satoshi-san? Could you do the honors?"

"Gladly, Saiba-senpai," Satoshi responded easily, setting out to prepare the kitchen.

"Honors of what?" Yuki asked. Takumi jumped; he had forgotten that the rest of Polar Star was probably watching this exchange with rapture.

"The testing," Shun responded, speaking up. "The Golden Faction requires you to complete three things before you are even considered to join. I assume that Saiba-senpai wants to test Aldini-san with the third thing right now."

"You presume correctly, Ibusaki-kun!" Sōma affirmed. "We'll start as soon as Satoshi-san is ready." He walked off to help the second year with his preparations, with Megumi following behind him, excusing herself hurriedly.

Takumi turned to Shun. "Would you mind explaining the three things you need to join a Faction right now to me?" he asked sheepishly.

"Well, it's different for the two Factions," another voice responded. Takumi blinked in surprise when he realized it was Ryoko responding to him. "The Silver Faction wants to see a recommendation from an esteemed professor, your marks in all cooking-related classes over the course of at least one year previous, enthusiastic participation in a research society, and proof that you know how to cook by completing a series of tasks such as deboning a fish or preparing a chicken within a specific time limit."

"How do you know about all of that, Sakaki-san?" Takumi asked curiously.

Ryoko just smiled at him in understanding. "I'm in the process of joining it, actually. I've completed the first two tasks and am working on my efficiency with cutlery. I'm a part of the Brewing RS as well, which focuses on the use of alcohols in cooking as well as preparing alcoholic beverages to be used."

Takumi just nodded wordlessly, surprised that she was so knowledgeable and yet surprised that he was surprised in the first place.

"The Golden Faction requires that you develop a personal style distinct from anyone else, create and execute a brand new recipe in a Shokugeki with a well established judge, and show your competence by going head to head with one of its top tier members and being judged as at least almost equal," Shun said quietly. "It is much less perfection driven, and yet so much harder to complete. Also, if you were to try to go up in the ranks of the Faction, you have to challenge someone that is regarded as more skilled or overall just better and prove yourself to be at their level. It's rather brutal, to be honest."

"And yet, you got in as a middle-schooler, Ibusaki-kun, as well as just barely losing to Kurokiba-senpai," Ryoko said teasingly. Shun just ignored her, muttering, "I still lost to him."

"What's a Shokugeki, if you don't mind my asking?" Takumi ventured.

"It's an age-old tradition here at Tōtsuki," Ryoko said. "If two students have a quarrel, or if one has something that the other wants, then they can agree to duel in a Shokugeki. Each side must have something equal to offer to the other; Saiba-senpai and Tsukasa-senpai had a Shokugeki over who got the privilege of sitting First Seat and who sat Second Seat, for example. Each offered the other his unerring loyalty for this year, which has made the Elite Ten run a bit more smoothly from what I know, but I think there have been Shokugeki over Seats that resulted in the challenger's expulsion. Each side agrees on the details of the fight, such as the theme and food allowed. Finally, there are always an odd number of impartial judges, so there can never be a tie between the two competitors. There's also a lot of paperwork involved, apparently, though that's usually the Elite Ten's job to sort out."

"That seems complicated for a cooking contest," the blond-haired Italian muttered, rubbing a temple as his head reeled over the information that Ryoko had just given him.

"Shokugeki isn't just a cooking contest," Shun spoke up. "For many students, it's a way of life. Many things are settled over Shokugeki, and many students have been forced out of the school because they bit off more than they could chew over one. You might think it a bit much, but as a chef, you need to know your own boundaries, how to push them, and how not to overstep them. It's as important a skill as learning how to sharpen a knife."

Takumi nodded thoughtfully and began to mull over the rest of Shun's former words.

"'Head to head with one of its top tier members?'" Takumi repeated, wondering if he understood Shun's words correctly.

"You heard correctly, Aldini-san," Shun said. "You'll be tested on that one right now. Isshiki-senpai currently stands at the fifth best member of the Golden Faction, and it's him you'll be tested against in an unofficial Shokugeki right now."

* * *

 **For those of you curious, here's a list of confirmed Faction members:**

 **GOLDEN FACTION- Saiba Sōma, Tadokoro Megumi, Nakiri Alice, Kurokiba Ry** **ō** **, Isshiki Satoshi, Ibusaki Shun**

 **SILVER FACTION- Tsukasa Eishi, Kobayashi Rindo, Kinokuni Nene**

 **Some might be surprising, but I do have a bit of logic as to why I placed them in a specific Faction. Other characters are already sorted into Factions as well; I just haven't revealed them yet. If you want to know why, feel free to leave a review or PM me. It's not too much of a spoiler :)**

 **I did the final character switching (putting lines over o's, for example) really last minute, so I might have missed a few. Sorry about that in advance!**

 **-Shriayle**


	5. Of Mackerel and Chocolate

**I SWEAR I'M NOT DEAD. Although college did try to make that a reality. But the good news is that I'm done for the year and now summer's started! (and i've got myself an internship and will therefore still be working but not as nonstop as these past nine-ish months have been)**

 **So yeah. Not much else to say. I've got a few other story ideas that are coming up and I do really want to write them, but not sure how feasible that is. I'll write it in the A/N at the bottom so I don't detract from your reading experience, so please let me know how you feel about the idea that I've come up with! (also: longer chapter to appease you. I might do this from now on; it's a lot easier to get into the flow of writing now)**

 **REPLIES:**

 **swishyla:** I meant to respond to this with a PM but completely forgot. Let me know if you're still curious and I'll message you that day, I swear. And no, there have been people who graduated having not joined a Faction, but there's a growing tendency to snub those not in Factions or gearing up to join Factions as they're kind of looked-down-upon. There are actually many notable exceptions to the Factions, which you'll see as the story progresses. | **FoulIceQueen:** (haha you freak out about my updating then, but now you see my updating now after more than two months agh) (add korean for I'm really sorry, thanks for your interest) Haha, the long wait was not planned (i hate college) | **ShoredKafka:** I have detailed why Rindō is in the Faction she's in for you, from what I remember. But yeah, I originally had her in the Gold Faction to be honest. | **annashina:** More Sōmegu? Sure. | **Eramis8:** Hmm, thanks for your input on that! And yeah, Sōma still prepares the furikake, though he takes it as an opportunity to experiment as he tends to do in this universe. | **Login (Guest):** Well, y'see, the way I've aligned the narrative, Takumi/Ikumi relationship might not even happen until much later in the story. Also I sort of have someone in mind but I want to see how the story plays out and how I want to take the narrative before dealing with the romance. And the Hisako/Sōma is as played out as I can make it xD I'm not sure how much those two will be interacting. We'll just have to see~ | **infurno:** Thanks! | **Anonymous Person (Guest):** Erina is in fact Factionless right now, though more on why in a bit. And since you don't have an account, I'll just give you a brief overview: Rindō applauds creativity just as much in this universe, but the Factions aren't a solid split between "imagination" and "tradition" as much as I've painted them to be. Both Factions recognize the other Faction's ideal's worth in becoming a great chef; they just choose to focus on one aspect to hone while in high school and still polish the other. In that vein, Rindō chooses to follow the ideals of great skill because she values quality and refinement of dishes over creativity because I see her in the series as a budding critic more than a budding chef. She seems to sample things in order to judge how good they are to me, and I believe that, to critics, a good quality meal is far better than a creative one. That's just my perspective, though, and that's what led me to put Rindō in the Silver Faction. | **Monii (Guest):** I just liked the way that the furikake depicted Sōma's personality as an imaginative person, to be honest. And thanks! | **MERA (Guest):** Shokugeki tiiiime :D And thanks for the input! | **C001DUD3:** Nice penname, friend. And yeah, I've been playing Takumi as a pseudo-Sōma, but that's mostly because if I were to play him as in-character as I'd like, the plotline would derail far sooner than I really want it to. His dorkishness and other notable features do start to take root starting in this chapter, though, I promise. And both Erina and Hisako are Factionless at the moment. | **godess bubbles:** I updated soon-ish in terms of when you found this story xD | **jessikasasusaku:** I promise I won't :)

* * *

"Wait, Isshiki-senpai is only fifth?" Yūki cut in. "I could have sworn he was third."

"Don't pretend to know Faction politics, Yoshino-san," Shun said somewhat harshly, his unseen eyes narrowing behind his bangs. "Isshiki-senpai is a good chef, but he doesn't focus on cooking enough. His passion has always been teaching, never trying to better his style. His style is already good enough for him so he's stopped developing it, and that's not exactly with Golden Faction teachings. Some have already called for his removal from the top. Even now, other students are hard at work, training to challenge Isshiki-senpai for his spot as fifth. When last I heard, someone, another second-year, was even ready to do so. Isshiki-senpai's lucky that he still has his spot at all. He might be Saiba-senpai's left-hand man, but that doesn't mean he has to be the best."

"Is Tadokoro-senpai not second then?" Ryōko asked, brow furrowed.

"She's second, yes. There are other students who do not exactly follow Golden Faction rules who are just below them, solely because their contributions aren't quite as stellar, nor are their skills. They just don't like being tied down the way that following Saiba-senpai around and serving as his hands does. They like experimenting too much to even think about serving another chef. Kurokiba-senpai is one of them." Shun's face screwed up slightly. "I'm going to take his position one of these days, just watch me," he muttered under his breath.

Takumi had to take a moment not to be shocked by his blatant competitive hostility towards someone who was obviously much more skilled before realizing that this fiery attitude was just what got Shun into the Golden Faction to begin with. The desire to be the best in his style and to force others to accept their inferiority was one that completely encapsulated what the Golden Faction was, from what the blond Italian could see.

"So then, what are the styles and restrictions this time, Saiba-senpai?"

"Why don't we let the new kid choose?" Sōma suggested, turning slightly to face Takumi. The blond blinked, his body twitching slightly when he realized that everyone was watching him.

"Erm, I mean, I'm not really sure how Shokugekis really work, still," Takumi said sheepishly. "Do one of you guys want to decide?"

Sōma was stunned into silence, his eyes bugging out slightly as he gaped at Takumi. He wasn't the only one surprised.

"Y-you don't want to be able to choose your match?" Megumi stuttered out. "Satoshi-kun is a second year, and not only that, one that joined the Golden Faction last year. He's got experience, training, and Elite Ten knowledge supporting him, but you want to just hand him a possible victory?"

Takumi felt mildly insulted by that. "Do you think that I need to give him a disadvantage to win against him?!" he asked heatedly.

Maybe not just _mildly_ insulted, then.

"If you insist," Megumi said uncertainly. Sōma just watched him with now narrowed and glittering amber eyes that gleamed with interest, his posture as regal and calm as a lion examining his territory with a glance.

"Well then, let's have our other Faction member choose then, shall we?" Sōma proposed. "Ibusaki-kun! What do you think these two should cook with?"

Shun didn't seem fazed by being chosen. Rather, he almost expected that outcome and had already been thinking. "Why don't we try a mackerel dish?" he suggested. "After all, we don't have much else in this house."

"We could always ask Yoshino-chan to get us some more eggs and have an egg showdown," Ryōko pointed out.

"You mean, what Imoto-chan wanted to do earlier. No thanks," Sōma said, brushing her suggestion away. "So! The style will be your personal style and the restriction is that it has to include mackerel as a main component. Shouldn't be too difficult for either of you."

Takumi internally seethed at the implication that something else might be too difficult for him to cook with.

"Let's give you two an hour, shall we say? Everything you need should be here, in the kitchen, but if you need produce or something we can try and procure it."

"A lot of the vegetables from the garden have been harvested by now," Satoshi interrupted to say. "Lettuce, eggplants, cucumbers, etcetera; they should all be set to the side to be washed."

Takumi took a second to be indignant that Fumio hadn't told him that prior to his entrance challenge.

"Ah! That should be fine then. You two start cooking by the time Megumi-chan finishes counting to one, and I'll go get some people to judge!" Sōma pulled his phone out of his pocket and walked away, dialing a number.

Megumi rolled her eyes. "I know exactly who he's going to call, and it might not be pretty. Good grief." She turned back around and smiled at the two competitors. "I'll clap three times. Please feel free to start by the time you hear the third clap!"

They froze, concentrating.

 _Clap._ Takumi's palms felt sweaty. He impatiently rubbed them against his jeans, though the slickness didn't fade as much as he wanted.

 _Clap._ He glanced at Satoshi, who seemed calm and ready to go, completely undisturbed even.

 _Clap._ And now Takumi was running for the produce, searching for that telltale color of the food that he needed, of the dish he had thought of the second that Shun had suggested mackerel. He could feel the eyes of the others looking between him and Satoshi, who he hadn't even looked at quite yet. His hands moved almost automatically to debone the fish and prepare it to be cooked thoroughly, making a mess of pin bones that he neatly pushed to the side with a knife. The onlookers heard the sound of sizzling meat being cooked on pans and watched the two chefs compete.

Satoshi, on one side, was calm. His expression hadn't dropped the light smile he always seemed to wear, though it looked more thoughtful now as opposed to lighthearted. His eyes were open for once, his sky blue irises visible as they glanced back and forth between the ingredients that he wanted to use and observing Takumi's actions. He seemed to recognize what the blond Italian was doing and smiled to himself as he continued to cook.

The fact that Satoshi could guess what he was making with just a glance spooked Takumi more than he'd like to admit. As the blond first-year frantically grasped for ideas on how to throw the second-year off, his eyes settled on his knife case. He had only taken his normal knife out, and that had been to debone the mackerel, and he hadn't intended to bring out his prized possession so soon, but if this was to get into a Faction, Takumi was willing to go all out.

He threw in a handful of chopped, cooked potatoes into a skillet with a generous swirl of oil and stirred it quickly before running to his knife case and opening it fully. The blond Italian took a moment to look at what was inside, his eyes softening slightly as he traced the tool's outline with the tip of his finger. He could hear the confused chattering of his audience, wondering what the tool in his knife case was, but he paid them no mind.

Sōma had returned to the room by then, having contacted the one other person that he wanted for this cook-off. His eyes and smile grew wide when he recognized the instrument in Takumi's case. It was an instrument that not many used and even fewer had mastered, especially in Totsuki. If this first-year could use it to some degree of success, then he really did deserve the attention that Sōma himself had been giving him.

That being said...

"Aldini-kun." The blond jumped slightly, looking at Megumi with an expression that resembled that of a startled rabbit. "You might want to pay attention to your pan."

Takumi blinked unknowingly before realizing that he had almost overcooked the potatoes. Yelping aloud, Takumi hastily grabbed the tool out of the case with his left hand, running the short distance back to the pan to grab a pair of chopsticks and stir the potatoes in the pan a little bit more. He sighed in relief when he realized that they weren't quite burned, though his heart pounded wildly at the near calamity.

His classmates now saw in full the tool that had been in his case. "What kinda knife is that?" Shōji asked aloud.

"Dumbass! That's... uh, well, that's..." Daigo trailed off. "Yo, game-girl, what is that, d'you know?"

"Why would you think I would know?" the ginger asked, an eyebrow raised. "And don't call me that!"

"It's a single-bladed mezzaluna," Shun spoke up.

"You're much more talkative that normal today," Yūki said.

Shun responded with only silence. Yūki huffed.

"A mezzaluna?" Ryōko repeated, furrowing her brow.

"Named for its shape," Sōma said, interrupting Shun just as the auburn-haired boy opened his mouth to explain. He nodded in apology before continuing. "It's usually used to prepare a pesto or soffritto in Italian cuisine. It's also called a hachoir or an herb chopper. 'Mezzaluna' just happens to be the most common name for it in the United Kingdom. They can have multiple blades attached to its handles if you want to tenderize something more substantial, like meats and such."

"Sounds like a complicated blade to work with," Ryōko commented, examining Takumi's tool much more thoughtfully.

"It can be," Megumi said. "I've tried one once; it didn't go very well."

"You had uneven consistency and lost all of the wind from your sails immediately afterwards," Sōma said drily. Megumi flushed and seemed to deflate slightly from the comment as well as the memory, though Sōma's follow-up kiss to her cheek brought her mood right back up.

All the while, Takumi had been preparing all of his ingredients and placed them in a neat pile in front of him. He swallowed slightly, closed his eyes, and took a deep breath before holding the mezzaluna in front of him. After a couple of heartbeats, Takumi's eyes snapped open and he began to cut the vegetables in front of him, reducing them to a somewhat thick paste.

" _Fratellino_ , could you pass me the salt, pepper, and oregano?" Takumi asked as the mezzaluna sped up in his hands, thinning out the paste in front of him. When he heard no response, Takumi froze for a split second, fumbling with the mezzaluna as he did so.

Right. The Aldini twins had become the Aldini twin. Takumi stood alone and without his usual shadow.

Takumi grabbed pinches of the ingredients he had listed to an imaginary Isami and threw them into the paste as well as the small bowl full of capers he had set to the side prior to asking his brother for help before trying to start up the rhythm he had established with his mezzaluna previously.

Sōma's eyes narrowed at his uncharacteristic clumsiness and the haphazard way that the blond first year measured out the flavoring agents he had used as well as the flustered look that had appeared in Takumi's bright blue eyes following his words to no one.

Takumi winced at the end product, holding his mezzaluna up uncertainly. The capers hadn't been cut as evenly as he usually cut them, most likely because he was so distracted by the way he forgot that Isami wasn't there. He shook his head slightly before taking the mezzaluna and swinging it into a lemon he had grabbed, only cutting halfway through the yellow citrus. Takumi grimaced before haphazardly squeezing the fruit, making sure to avoid squeezing the seeds out of the fruit. He poured some of the juice into the paste in front of him, which he then relocated to a bowl before turning his attention back to his fish, which had been waiting for him innocently in the fridge where he stored them. Takumi brushed some olive oil onto the pieces and sprinkled a delicate amount of salt and pepper before throwing the fish on a grill for about eight minutes, ensuring that the fish was cooked through before plating a few servings of his dish.

"I'm done," Takumi said simply.

"As am I," Satoshi added with a nod, drying his hands off onto a towel.

"Great! Let's wait for our third judge to arrive, then," Sōma said with a toothy grin, leaning back against the wall.

"We shouldn't have to wait for too long now, right?" Megumi asked.

"Not at all, Tadokoro-san!" an unfamiliar female voice sang out from somewhere down the hall, behind the doorway. "After all, all Saiba-san had to say was 'tasting food' and I just couldn't stop myself from running all the way here!"

"Kobayashi-san, don't kid me into thinking that you actually took the time to run all the way to the Polar Star Dormitory," Sōma replied, rolling his eyes.

The raspberry-haired girl that appeared in the doorway widened her eyes dramatically, faux surprise dancing in her cat-like irises. Takumi immediately noticed the sparkle of a silver earring and luminous glow of the pearl that was embedded in it. "Saiba-san! Are you trying to say that I wouldn't put in that much effort for a favor that you call in?" she asked melodramatically, acting offended. "How cruel of you to imply such a thing!"

"Kobayashi-san's stomach is the true ruler of her body as opposed to her brain or heart," Megumi affirmed with a sigh.

"Tadokoro-saaaaaaaan," she groaned, pouting and crossing her arms across her ample chest. Megumi's eyes narrowed at the pointed gesture and she raised her left eyebrow questioningly. The other girl responded with a devilish smirk and an even tighter grip around her torso.

"You two need to stop fighting," Sōma said with a broad smile, coming in between them and wrapping an arm around each girl's shoulders. The pinkish-haired girl seemed to lean in, basking in the physical touch, while Megumi just relaxed her stance while still glancing at her with some irritation. "We have a Shokugeki to judge, after all," the red-haired teenager said, oblivious to the fawning from his right and Megumi's annoyed expression.

Takumi found himself wondering who the newcomer was.

"You don't know me?" she asked, blinking.

It was only then that the blond first-year realized that he thought aloud.

"Give the new kid some leeway, Kobayashi-san, he's just transferred in," Sōma said, waving his hand somewhat lazily.

"New kid? Hey, were you the one that made a fool of himself in the opening ceremony?" the unknown girl asked, smirking widely again. "Good going on that, by the way."

Takumi blushed in embarrassment, furious that his foolhardy words had resulted in this.

"Kobayashi-san, play nice," Megumi said sternly. "You're here to judge his cooking, not his character."

 _'Somehow, that doesn't make me feel better,'_ Takumi thought.

"Ah, right, right! But it won't be appropriate to tear him apart if he doesn't know who I am!" she said brightly.

Shun grabbed Takumi's shoulder before he could make a move towards the girl. "That's Kobayashi Rindo of the Silver Faction," the auburn-haired boy hissed into Takumi's ear. "She's a third-year. She's a sort of jack-of-all-trades when it comes to cooking, but her real expertise lies in critique. Her tongue is second only to Nakiri Erina's in terms of sharpness, and though she doesn't have the same God's Palate ability, Kobayashi-senpai is able to detect everything that went into someone's cooking, how each ingredient was treated, and much more to a high level of accuracy. She currently sits as the second-best chef in the Silver Faction."

Takumi's eyes widened at the thought of having such a talented critic try his food before narrowing at the thought of the challenge.

"Isshiki-kun! Let's try your food first! It's been a while since I've last had it," Rindo said, bouncing into a seat and sitting with her elbows on the table, hands pushing her cheeks up. Satoshi merely took her childishness in stride with a chuckle and gracefully put servings of his dish down in front of the judges. He turned back to the counter he was working at and grabbed another.

"Here, Aldini-san, I made you a serving as well," he said, passing the plate of food as well as a pair of chopsticks over to Takumi. The first year took the food offering and looked at it.

It was a simple dish: fried mackerel sat in a bed of bright green puree, with a single cabbage leaf as the only garnish in the dish. It was adorned with what looked to be a pinch of pepper and something green.

That was it.

Sōma, Megumi, and Rindo all scrutinized the dish carefully, their eyes lighting up as they noticed different things that Takumi hadn't, which made him all the more nervous.

"Ah, I smell sake in there!" Rindo sang. "It's been a while since you've used that, hasn't it?"

"I've used it in dishes in the past," Satoshi answered mildly, avoiding the question rather noticeably.

"Did you put any citrus in here at all?" Sōma asked, inhaling the smell of the dish and smiling unconsciously.

"No, none at all. All of the flavor should come from the fish and the cabbage."

"This cabbage must have been the freshest of the crop," Megumi muttered to herself, though her words were loud enough and the enraptured audience was quiet enough for everyone to hear what she was saying. "It barely seems to leave any smell in the overall dish, and yet it still contributes to the overall flavor profile. Only the ripest of cabbage would do that in this dish."

"Let's stop talking about it and try it for ourselves!" Rindo said, cutting Megumi off. The blue-haired girl stared at her with narrowed eyes, though Sōma cut the one-sided tension off by poking her in the cheek and sticking the tip of his tongue out at her between his teeth as he grinned. She couldn't seem to help but grin back as she picked up her chopsticks and neatly cut off a small segment of the fish and blew off any remaining steam with a puff of breath.

Takumi watched as the third years seemed to be transported into another world entirely, one in which the present world didn't matter at all. He watched as Megumi's hair seemed to flutter in an unfelt breeze, watched as Sōma's eyes flew open in what looked like a glazed astonishment, watched as Rindo's face screwed up into a catlike smirk and her hair seemed to stand on end as she shivered in her seat. He looked at the innocuous dish in his hand and wondered just how good it must have been to invoke such a reaction from students of the highest caliber in the school. Biting his lip, Takumi hesitantly split off a piece with his chopsticks and fumbled with the fish, trying to get it into his mouth.

The flavor exploded. There was no other word for it. The fish in his mouth felt like it melted into a haze of light yet flavorful cabbage and a swirl of fish. The cabbage had an unexplained spring to it, its sweet flavor mixing into the bland, delicate meat of the mackerel. Each separate profile became another facet of the garden of flavors that Takumi walked through, each one as vivid and recognizable as a different blossom of an array of flowers.

It was invigorating and intoxicating, all at the same time.

"How refreshing!" Megumi said with a sigh. "It's all just like we thought."

"Yes, Isshiki-san has found the springtime in the few ingredients he used and brought them to the forefront of his dish," Rindo said with a pleased expression.

Sōma said nothing, but a ghost of his previous smile still lingered in his expression.

"Well then, shouldn't it be time for you to judge Aldini-san's dish as well, judges?" Satoshi asked lightly, opening one eye humorously.

"Ah, yes, Aldini-kun's," Megumi said, sounding distracted. Takumi just awkwardly walked forwards with the plates and expertly flicked his wrist, sending the plates across the table to skid to a perfect stop in front of the three third years.

"Er, here's some for you too, Isshiki-senpai," Takumi said in a stilted voice, handing over a serving of his dish to the second year. The brunet's face lit up and he thanked Takumi profusely, resulting in Takumi feeling even more awkward as he stood and awaited judgment.

Rindo took a deep breath, inhaling the scent of the food. "My, what a rich, wonderful smell!" she purred, her shoulders hunching and flexing under her uniform. "It makes me want to sink into it like a puffy cloud."

"These tomatoes have been cut so delicately and uniformly, even though there seems to be a little bit of inconsistency in terms of shape," Megumi noted, poking the aforementioned produce with her chopsticks. "It's nothing that detracts from the overall dish, just a little detail that I've noticed here."

"The color suits the entire dish as well," Sōma commented. "The bright red makes the mackerel look whiter and cleaner, while still instilling what feels like vitality in the dish. It's the opposite of what Isshiki-san did by using the light green of the cabbage."

Every one of their comments brought another icicle closer and closer to Takumi's heart. He was used to people being enamored by his dishes, wanting just one more scrap of food. Here, the people he was serving were practically geniuses, astute judges that would mince no words with him. That they were only two years older than him suddenly meant nothing at all. They were decades, no, centuries older than he in terms of experience and skill, and he could only hope that he would ascend to that level by the time he himself became a third year.

"Let's try it," Sōma said finally, and the girls picked up their chopsticks as though they were waiting for such a cue. The three third years simultaneously cut off a portion of food and carefully put it into their mouths. Satoshi waited for them to have their first bit before trying some himself.

They each experienced something different. Rindo felt as though she were jumping into a pool of the fresh tomato flavor, reveling in the oregano that floated along with her. She felt herself gasp as the mackerel came into play, leaping in as well and washing more tomato flavor over her. A grin spread across her face without any other beckoning, and she squeaked in happiness as she enjoyed the flavor of the food. Megumi felt as though she were walking through a field surrounded by both mackerel and tomato, feeling only the warmth of the sun that surrounded her in an embrace that the mackerel and tomatoes joined in with.

Sōma remained silent as his colleagues began to speak of what it was they loved so much in the dish, from the freshness of the produce to the richness of the fish, the crispiness that they felt in their mouths. He remained thoughtful, staring down at the dish with a finger on his lips and thumb on his chin.

"Well, senpai? Who won?" Shun asked.

Sōma looked up, his golden eyes looking directly into Takumi's sky-blue eyes. He smiled slightly before closing them and shaking his head lightly.

"Why, Isshiki-san did, of course."

* * *

"So you didn't win the contest, _fratellone_?"

Takumi grimaced at his brother's voice, distorted by the static caused by long-distance. "No, I didn't."

There was silence before Isami began to howl with laughter. Takumi scowled. He had expected this reaction from the second he decided to talk to his little brother about the result of the impromptu cooking duel.

"It was against the Seventh Seat! We had the First, Second, and Fourth Seats judging! It was disgraceful to be defeated so soundly," Takumi growled to his laughing brother. _'Not to mention, I lost my chance at fulfilling a requirement to join the Golden Faction...'_

"Y-you sound so hung up over it!" Isami managed to say between snorts. Takumi could hear him whine slightly as he tried to catch his breath, and the blond could imagine his brunet brother curling in on himself, eyes streaming from tears, holding an aching midsection as he hiccupped and struggled to hold in his amusement. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say that there was a girl that rejected you or something!" Takumi felt his temper rise as his brother stopped chuckling suddenly and asked pseudo-seriously, "There isn't a girl, is there?"

"THERE IS NO GIRL, ISAMI!" Takumi shouted, startling the classmates he was walking past. He felt their eyes settle on him, some apparently more interested than others, and his face burned from embarrassment as Takumi began to pace away. "You made me shout in the middle of the school, you dummy," he hissed into the phone.

"Oops. Sorry," Isami responded plainly, not sounding apologetic at all. "We were speaking in Italian, though."

"Still, it's the thought..." Takumi muttered.

"Anyhow, you were talking about clubs you wanted to join, right?"

" _Research Societies_ ," Takumi corrected, emphasizing both words.

"Yeah, clubs," Isami said, not bothering to correct himself.

Takumi huffed. "Why do I put up with your nonsense?"

"Heehee, you're funny, _fratellone_ ," Isami said with a chuckle. "Do you know which one you want to join yet?"

"Well, I was thinking about joining something related to desserts. Maybe I'll be able to bake something good for _Mamma_ when I come back."

"She'd love that, I'm sure." Takumi thought he heard his brother yawn and quickly checked his phone, flicking through the different time zones he had installed onto it.

"Hold on. Why are you calling me at 1 in the morning?!" he asked sharply.

"Wanted to talk to you," Isami replied, mumbling slightly. "We just closed half an hour ago."

"Isami, you actually have to open and run the _trattoria_ by yourself now," Takumi reprimanded. "Get some sleep. I'll talk to you tomorrow."

"Alright, alright. _Ciao, fratellone,_ " Isami said, knowing not to argue with Takumi, and hung up.

"I swear," Takumi muttered to himself, stashing his cell phone in his pocket.

"You have a brother?" a voice behind him asked. Takumi jumped before whipping around to see Shun.

"Oh. Hi." It had only been about eight hours since the disastrous cooking contest, and seeing someone who had been so involved in the event wasn't what Takumi really wanted at the moment.

Shun was silent for a bit, waiting for a response.

"...Isami's my twin. He's technically considered the younger of us."

"Ah."

They walked in silence for a while longer.

"Is there a dessert-based research society, anyhow?" Shun asked Takumi after a moment.

"I don't know. I'm going to check right now," Takumi responded. Shun nodded thoughtfully and began to fiddle with the gold band around his finger unconsciously, making Takumi look away with a slightly peeved expression.

They walked up to a corkboard covered in flyers with flaps that contained contact information. Takumi began to scrutinize all of the flyers, muttering to himself.

"Don RS... Local Cuisine RS... why isn't there anything for desserts?" he asked himself.

"Well, to be fair, a lot of students here don't see baking or dessert making as a kind of cooking. They see it as more of a hobby. Therefore, there's no formal RS dedicated to it. The closest is probably..." Shun trailed off as he looked through the flyers through his bangs somehow and found the one he wanted, tearing off a little strip of paper and handing it to Takumi.

"The Chocolate RS?" Takumi read out.

"Focuses on incorporating chocolate into all sorts of dishes, from desserts to actual meals," Shun informed him. "It's probably your best bet in terms of learning how to bake treats without having to ask another student for a one-on-one lesson or something."

"Hmm. Why don't we check it out? It meets in a half an hour," Takumi said, glancing over the information. "It's in a practice classroom in the B building, I think."

Shun shrugged. "That building's over there," he said, pointing off. "If you don't mind me, I'm due in my own RS soon." Without another word, Shun walked off in the opposite direction.

"...hm," Takumi said, blinking at Shun's retreating back. He shrugged it off and walked on to the classroom.

He walked into a world of bustling and business, shouting and frantic gestures, which was startling as the room was only occupied by three students. Blinking, Takumi carefully walked in, uncertain of what else to do.

"I need three cups of sugar in this batter and I need someone to cut this pasta! Move it, move it, come on, people!" a strident voice called out. Takumi watched as two of the three people in the room struggled over to fulfill the first's demands. The two people frantically darting across the room and nearly bumping into one another appeared to be around his age while the one pointing around the room dramatically was definitely older, probably by a year or so. Takumi approached the older one, noting his caramel-colored hair that seemed to have some of the sugary substance coated and dry on the strands.

"Um, excuse me..?" Takumi ventured, watching the boy examine what looked like a candy thermometer.

"Agh!" The boy shouted suddenly, flailing with his arms and practically throwing the thermometer back into the pot that he had picked it up from. He whipped around, his startled light green eyes staring at Takumi. The first year noted the darkish bags under the other student's eyes, a testament to his hard work.

"Oh, hi, hello, hi, yes," the boy said, dusting off some flour from his already white sleeves. "Hello. Hi."

"Yes, hello," Takumi said, getting a little bit irritated now.

"Yes. Hi." The student finally realized how much he was repeating himself and stuck his hand out to Takumi. "Katoukoe Yuuke, second year, at your service! I'm the Captain of the Chocolate RS."

"Aldini Takumi, first year. It's nice to meet you," Takumi responded, taking the hand and shaking it firmly.

"Now, how can I be of service?" Yuuke's eyes lit up. "Can I show you come of my newest experiments? You're Italian, from your name, right? Do you want to try some chocolate pasta? I just finished up the dough."

"Chocolate pasta?" Takumi asked uncertainly.

Yuuke nodded brightly before turning back around, looking irritated in the second that he did so. "Hisakawa-san! Is my pasta ready now or not, and if not, will it ever be?!"

"I'm sorry, Katoukoe-senpai," the first year said, preparing to cut the dough with a rather large butcher knife.

"Wait!" The first year, Hisakawa, paused with the knife in midair. "Let me do that," Takumi said, putting down his mezzaluna case and taking the instrument out. The others watched, amazed, as he had the pasta prepared in only seconds, much faster than what it would have normally taken any of them to get the noodles ready.

"Wow! That was awesome!" Hisakawa gushed, clenching his fists and bringing them close to his face. This wouldn't have been notable if he hadn't still been holding the butcher knife, which freaked Takumi out, resulting in his waving his arms frantically in warning (after putting the mezzaluna down himself).

"Hm. I guess you could call it that, if your standards have already dropped so low here." All four students in the practice room whipped around at the blasé female voice that echoed from the entrance of the kitchen. Standing in the doorway was one of the shortest girls that Takumi had ever seen, possibly one of the shortest in the school. She had short orchid purple hair that cut off at her chin, though there were two little bumps in her hair that had been tied to look almost like cat ears. Her jade green eyes glanced around the room and the space above her nose wrinkled slightly at the sight of the room. Takumi really couldn't blame her; flour, eggs, sugar, and cocoa covered the counters with both powder and cartons, and almost every piece of equipment was somehow stained. It didn't take away from the charm of the room to Takumi, though; everything was very clearly loved and taken care of, despite their messy appearance.

Apparently the newcomer didn't agree with his somewhat appreciation. The girl gave a dainty shudder before clutching the large cat plush toy she held to her chest even tighter and looking steadily down. "It's disgusting in here, isn't it, Bucchi?" she murmured, petting the toy's head. "I can't believe that Ojō-sama wants this as part of her territory."

"Ojō-sama?" Takumi asked aloud.

The girl glanced up at Takumi, twitched her nose once in irritation, and then looked away.

"Akanega-chibi-san, what are you doing in here?" Yuuke asked nonchalantly. The next moment, he was bowled over on the ground with Bucchi on top of him, seemingly angry, judging by the tick marks on his face.

"Call me that again and I'll have you beheaded, as well as your Research Society taken away from you," the girl said flatly, crossing her arms after throwing her toy.

"Taken away..?" Yuuke sat up. "You're here to close the Chocolate RS? After everything we did for you?"

The girl's face lit up bright red. "You did nothing for me that I couldn't do myself," she muttered. "Anyhow, this is what Ojō-sama wants, not what I want, Katoukoe-sen... Katoukoe-san."

Yuuke remained silent for a moment longer, his eyes widening. "She wants you to duel us for the right to the Chocolate RS. When you win, you'll have it demolished and disbanded."

The girl gingerly picked up her stuffed cat and briskly dusted the powder now coating it off. "It's nothing personal," she said, clutching it to herself again.

"What the heck, Akanegakubo-chan?" Hisakawa bemoaned, slumping to the ground. "We said we'd stick with this RS together, in a team!"

The girl completely ignored the boy before looking back to Takumi with a distasteful expression, steadfastly refusing to look him in the eyes. "You. Who are you?"

"Aldini Takumi, first year, transfer student," the blond replied as stiffly as he could. "You?"

"Akanegakubo Momo, also a first year," the girl responded reluctantly, examining her nails. "You'll want to leave before you get roped into a sinking ship."

"Sinking ship..? You're going to have a Shokugeki for the right to this Research Society, though, right? Assuming that you win seems barbaric to me."

"It's a common enough practice," Momo said, poking Bucchi's face. "As I said before, strictly business, though I do have fun watching the hope drain from my enemies' faces as I tear their dreams to bits. Now, Katoukoe-san, it's time for us to either negotiate in my favor or sort out the paperwork for a Shokugeki."

The caramel-haired second year tried to run his fingers through aforementioned hair before wincing as he got to a particularly badly sugarcoated knot. "Fine, fine," he said with a sigh. "What is it you want? I don't want to fight a losing battle."

"The Research Society is to be disbanded and all members dismissed," Momo listed in a monotonous drone, clearly reciting a monologue she was forced to memorize. "No one can study this discipline outside of class, period, even if they weren't in the Research Society. If you want to hold one-on-one sessions with others, that is of your jurisdiction, but any gathering of three or more will be seen as a challenge to these rules."

Yuuke sighed. "Those guidelines seem somehow fair and alright to me," he said reluctantly. "What do I need to sign?"

"Hold on!" Takumi shouted, to Momo's irritation and Yuuke's confusion. "You're just going with this? Why not fight it?"

Yuuke blinked. Momo's eye twitched at the interruption of the otherwise smooth transfer of power.

"It's not worth it, Aldini-san," Yuuke tried to explain. "The RS will be defeated. We trained Akanegakubo-chan in only chocolate, and even then she knew more than enough and practically taught us. There's no way we can beat her."

"Not with that attitude you can't," Takumi snapped before turning to Momo herself. "You're just another first year. I'll have the Shokugeki with you instead! I bet you can't beat me, no matter what you choose as the subject and ingredient!"

Momo's eyes widened in shock before filling with an angry fire. "You think you can best me?!" she snarled, all previous iciness lost in her fury. "I am one of the ones chosen by Nakiri Erina herself! She is stronger than you could ever _dream_ to be, and we, her select few, are the strongest of our year!" She then held herself back and regained her composure. "You know what, I could have fun with this. I'll delay this decision by one day. If you want to see one of our group in action, I believe Mito-san's destroying the Don Research Society tomorrow. You can go see the futility of your choice then. If you decide to go through with this foolhardy challenge after seeing that resounding defeat, I'll let you represent the Chocolate Research Society. And, if you fail to best me in that Shokugeki, you will be _expelled_ from Totsuki! Do you accept?"

"Yes," Takumi said, not faltering.

Momo finally looked up, staring him in the eyes. She stayed silent, though her gaze seemed to pierce into Takumi's and read everything that he had ever thought before.

She smiled for the first time that day. It wasn't a pleasant smile at all; it wasn't one of cheer and happiness. It was a smile that promised of retribution and anger.

"Well then, Aldini Takumi, I look forward to your demise," she spat out before turning on her heel and walking out of the room.

* * *

 **Credits go to Saint Danielle for being a wonderful human being and creating Katoukoe Yuuke within a few hours after I messaged them in a panic because I ran out of ideas for an OC and really wanted to get this chapter done**

 **So my new story idea comes from the recent chapter where Sōma technically lost the Shokugeki against Eishi and rather than letting him go, Eishi decides to literally twist Sōma into the perfect right hand man. Not sure where the plotline would go, but I wanted to give it a try :) Hopefully it wouldn't turn out like** ** _Nisegami_** **which is a wonderful fic that everyone reading this should go follow, but it should turn into its own dark monster.**

 **Speaking of dark monsters,** ** _Kitchen Alchemy_** **will be updated soon I swear.**

 **Also please expect updates every month or so from now on. Don't hold me to high updating standards xD**

 **(and i've been trying to come up with new story ideas that would end up as Sōma/Erina but all that i can think of are AUs so give me time to come up with something for that)**

 **(and also i might be slowly traversing into different fandoms at some point; i've got an idea for Legend of Zelda, Pokémon, and Warriors stories on top of a prequel to my other Shokugeki story (** ** _Welcome to Hell: Devils' Edition_** **) and I don't know where they came from but I want to get them written agh)**

 **(actually i've decided that i'll be putting up a poll to decide which fandom i'm going to write fanfiction for soon and there will be a few others than those i just listed above so please check that out! it should be live by the time that this story is updated)**

 **~Shriayle**


	6. Hello, again

...hey. What's up, guys.

So, in case you haven't noticed, I haven't updated my stories in a while, and by while, I mean that I haven't updated in over a year. This is mostly due to my busyness, but it's also a bit due to fandom burn-out. I'm not as interested in _Shokugeki_ as I was when I wrote even the 4th chapter of _Her Ani, His Imoto_ , and the only thing really keeping me going in writing _Shokugeki_ stories was the fact that people seemed to enjoy what I was writing and I wanted to keep making people happy. I'm afraid I can't quite do that anymore. I don't want to put out sub-par content solely to appease people, because that won't make you as happy as reading any passion project I choose to write would.

Basically, I'm not interested in writing this story anymore. I'm truly sorry.

However, I do want to open this up for other options. I could straight up stop writing this story, leaving it to sit here so that you guys can read the beginnings of what I imagined. I could take it down, rework it, try to find that interest again, and then repost it, with a new look to my old plot. My last possible option is that I could put it up for adoption. If one of you wants to take these beginnings and craft an entirely new story with it, I'd be more than willing to have a conversation with you and pass on all of the notes I made prior to going on this hiatus.

And with that, I will leave this up to you, dear readers. Were I to rewrite this myself, I'd need a few more months to reread, rework, and reimagine my story, trying to find that motivation to write it again, but I do promise that I will be able to write a new version of it before this year ends. If any of the other options are preferred, I am more than willing to hand off the reins, whether that be to another author or to the void.

I'll check back in a week to see if there are any opinions here. If not, I'll be deleting the story and gracefully bowing out so that people later on don't have to find it and wonder what happened to the rest of it.

Regards, Shriayle


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